SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – A recreational trail to nowhere could finally be connected to somewhere.  The Sioux City Journal reports that for four years, the three-mile Floyd River Trail hasn’t had a north trailhead. It ends abruptly, and the only way to reach it from the north is to walk through a muddy area, up a slope, across a railway bed, then down an embankment.

Because it doesn’t connect to another path, avid bicyclist Garrett Soldati, of Sioux City, says few people use the path.  That could change under a plan being studied by the Siouxland Interstate Metropolitan Planning Council to build a trail from Le Mars along state Highway 75 to Sioux City. It would connect to the Floyd River Trail.

The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports 38-year old Shannon James Keiffer-Rose, of rural Oakland, was sentenced Tuesday in United States District Court in Council Bluffs, on a Felon in possession of a firearm charge.  United States District Court Judge John A. Jarvey sentenced Keiffer-Rose to 12-months and one day in prison, to be followed by two years of supervised release. The Court also ordered Keiffer-Rose to forfeit whatever interest he has in a rifle, a shotgun, a .45 caliber pistol and ammunition found in his possession, and to pay a $100.00 special assessment for the Crime Victim Fund.

Keiffer-Rose was allowed to remain under supervision by the United States Probation Office pending designation of the Federal Bureau of Prisons facility at which he will serve his sentence.

Keiffer-Rose was sentenced following his plea of guilty on December 5tg, 2012, to being a felon in possession of a firearm. The firearm charge against Keiffer-Rose arose from a June 8, 2012, vehicle fire at his residence, during which responders discovered a marijuana grow, marijuana use paraphernalia, a.22 caliber rifle, a 12 gauge shotgun, a loaded .45 caliber handgun, and over 2,000 rounds of ammunition.

The investigation was conducted by the SouthWest Iowa Narcotics Task Force and the
Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

The City of Harlan will see the return of “Roar into Harlan” events beginning next week.  During the Harlan City Council meeting on Tuesday, Mike Wohlhutter, Coordinator for the Roar events, told the council things will change a little bit for this year’s events. Wohlhutter said they are going to make each night a different theme. There will be a music night, lady’s night, kid’s night and a few others.

Wohlhutter also told the council this year the Hotel/Motel tax committee helped by granting $4,000 for the events for all the liability that went for to pay per event and advertising fees. The first Roar into Harlan will be held on Thursday, May 16th and will be a patriotic theme. Wohlhutter said they will ride the colors into town again, as there was  much interest in that from the Patriot riders, Legion riders and locals.

Participants will meet at Harlan Auto Mart at 5:30pm and everything will be at the square at 6pm. There will be a flag folding ceremony, a dedication to the flag (to show what the thirteen folds mean), and what everything consists of with the ceremony.

Following this month’s Roar into Harlan, the flag used in the ceremony will be donated to Jack Kenkel for use at the Freedom Rock site, in Earling.

(Joel McCall/KNOD)

The Cass County Board of Supervisors have approved an application by the local Food Policy Group seeking funds from the USDA to help pay for a part-time Local Food Policy Coordinator. If the application is approved by the USDA, the Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) Program, would require up to $2,500 in County matching funds, which the Board also authorized by signing the forms. The County would serve as a sub-grantee for the program.

The total amount of the project is $58,450. Harrisdale Homestead has agreed to contribute a third-party, in-kind match of $6,000 for an office space for the part-time person, who has yet to be hired. That person would work out of the office, two-days per week.

Bahia Barry had served as the full-time Food Policy coordinator for Cass County from her office at the Golden Hills RC&D in Pottawattamie County, but her position was eliminated.

In other business, the Board tabled action on appointing a person to fill a vacancy position on the Cass County Zoning Board of Adjustment, as no one has expressed an interest in the post. The Cass County Zoning Board of Adjustment is a five (5) member board that holds hearings and issues decisions on applications for Special Exception Uses, Variances from the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance, and appeals of decisions by the Zoning Administrator. The Board of Adjustment has the final say on matters in which it has jurisdiction.

Thirty-two Iowa students, including two from the Kirn Middle School in Council Bluffs, took top honors in a statewide history contest this week and will represent Iowa at the National History Day competition next month at the University of Maryland. Junior Division qualifiers Sam Hulett and Ben Price, under guidance of teacher Deb Masker, won for their project entitled “Star Wars.”

The 32 students competed against 375 other students in the junior division (grades 6-8) of the National History Day in Iowa contest this week at the State Historical Museum of Iowa in Des Moines. The students join 38 other Iowa students who competed last week in the NHD in Iowa senior division (grades 9-12) in advancing to the 2013 Kenneth E. Behring National History Day Contest held June 9-14, 2013, at the University of Maryland.

The group of 70 Iowa students will compete for scholarships and cash prizes against nearly 2,500 students from the United States, Guam, America Samoa, Department of Defense Schools in Europe, and Shanghai, China.

National History Day is an academic-enrichment program that helps students learn about historical issues, ideas, people and events. The year-long academic adventure fosters students’ enthusiasm for learning and encourages them to use primary, secondary, community and statewide resources on a subject of their choice related to an annual theme. The theme for 2013 is “Turning Points in History: People, Ideas, Events.

Nearly 10,000 Iowa students competed in the program this year, with winners at school and district competitions advancing to the state contests in Des Moines.

w/ Ric Hanson

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Police in Red Oak report the arrest late Tuesday night of a Red Oak man. 19-year old Caleb Renn was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $300 bond, for “Breach of Peace,” after he was arrested at around 11:25-p.m. in the 2300 block of Eastern Ave., in Red Oak.

His arrest followed a report of a male being disruptive, near the intersection of North 4th Street and Alix Avenue.

Officials in Montgomery County say no injuries were reported following a chain-reaction accident Monday afternoon, four miles south of Red Oak. The Sheriff’s Department said a pickup driven by 28-year old Johnny Madden, of Red Oak, was stopped facing southbound at the intersection of Highway 48 and 250th Street at around 4:40-p.m.  Madden was waiting for a northbound car to pass so he could turn east onto 250th Street.

An SUV driven by 29-year old Brandy Pease, of Shenandoah, was stopped behind the pickup, when it was rear-ended by a car driven by 17-year old Moriah Kammerer, of Stanton. The teen told authorities she looked down for just a second, and when she looked up, was unable to stop in-time. The impact of the Kammerer vehicle hitting the SUV, caused it to be slammed into the rear of the pickup.

Damage to all three vehicles amounted to $17,800. No citations were issued at the scene.

(Update) –Police in Council Bluffs report a woman who was the subject of a regional “Attempt to Locate” search, turned her self in to authorities early this (Wednesday) morning. Officials say through a joint investigation with the Clarinda Police Department, 23-year old Sara Billi-Kier, of Clarinda,  cooperated with law enforcement and turned herself and her 8 month old daughter Taliah, over to the Police Department in Clarinda just after 1-a.m.

The child was found to be unharmed and has since been taken into protective custody. Sara Kier was arrested and is being held in Clarinda on a warrant out of Council Bluffs.

Late Tuesday morning. the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office posted on its Facebook page, that the Council Bluffs Police Department was asking for the public’s assistance in locating Kier and her daughter. Officials say Sara took Taliah without permission, during a supervised visitation in Council Bluffs on May 6th. The incident occurred when a Nebraska Boys Town Child Organization social worker in charge of the supervision, went to the restroom at a restaurant where the visitation too place.

Council Bluffs Police Sgt. Dave Dawson told the Daily NonPareil that Kier lost custody of her child after Kier tested positive for meth. Dawson said it’s not clear why the visitation took place in Council Bluffs, since none of the parties involved in the dispute are from there.

In a post on her Facebook page early this morning, Kier said she knows she made a mistake, and that people would not understand what she is going through. She intended to turn her daughter over to her grandmother before Kier turned herself in.