(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Cass County Sheriff’s Office today (Tuesday), released a report on arrests that occurred from July 26th to August 12th (today).

On August 12th, 2024, the Cass County Sheriff’s Office arrested Andrew Nickum, 35, of Casey, on a warrant for Theft 5th Degree.  Nickum was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked; and 33-year-old Jennifer Avey, of Casey, was arrested on a warrant for Theft 5th Degree.  Avey was transported to the Cass County Jail where she was booked and held pending her later release after her initial appearance.

Four arrests took place Sunday (August 11th), in Cass County: 54-year-old Craig Griffin, of Atlantic, was  arrested for Possession of a Controlled Substance – 2nd Offense, Possession of Marijuana – 2nd Offense and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.  Griffin was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release on his own recognizance; 33-year-old Tera Reyes, of Atlantic, was arrested for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.  Reyes was transported to the Cass County Jail where she was booked and held pending her later release on her own recognizance.; 57-year-old Danny Devore, of Cumberland, was arrested on a warrant for a Controlled Substance Violation as well as an additional charge of Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.  Devore was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held; and 49-year-old Stacey Ashton, of Elk Horn, was arrested for Possession of a Controlled Substance.  Ashton was transported to the Cass County Jail where she was booked and held pending her later release on her own recognizance.

On August 10th, Cass County Sheriff’s deputies arrested 36-year-old Timothy Chandler, of Atlantic, on the charges of Possession of a Controlled Substance, Possession of Marijuana and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.  Chandler was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release on his own recognizance. And, 33-year-old Morgan Leeder, of Lewis, was arrested on three charges of Child Endangerment as well as Interference with Official Acts.  Leeder was transported to the Cass County Jail where she was booked and held pending her later release on bond.

On August 7th, 2024, the Cass County Sheriff’s deputies arrested Jeremy Nolan, 43, of Westville, IL, on the charges of Driving while Revoked, Providing False Identification to Law Enforcement and Speed.  Nolan was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release on bond.

On August 6th, 2024, 69-year-old Ricky Roby, of Atlantic, was arrested on two warrants for Possession of Methamphetamine.  Roby was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release on bond.

On August 4th, 2024, 65-year-old Timothy Meyer, of Massena, was arrested on the charges of OWI 1st Offense, Driving Under Suspension and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.  Meyer was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release on his own recognizance.

On August 2nd, 2024, Edward Neff, 34, of Council Bluffs, was arrested for Child Endangerment causing Bodily Injury.  Neff was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held.

On July 29th, 2024, 45-year-old Ronnie Chandler, of Avoca, was arrested for OWI 1st Offense and Open Container.  Chandler was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release on his own recognizance.

On July 26th, 2024, 22-year-old Walter Sanchez-Balcazar, of Kennesaw, GA, was arrested for Trespass 1st Offense.  Sanchez-Balcazar was transported to the Cass County Jail where he was booked and held pending his later release on his own recognizance.

All criminal charges are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in the court of law.

(Radio Iowa) – A long-anticipated connection between two of Iowa’s most popular bike trails opens this weekend. The trail extension from Woodward to Perry creates a nearly-continuous 120-mile paved loop for bikers, runners and walkers on the Raccoon River Valley Trail and the High Trestle Trail. Andrea Boulton is the trails and community conservation director for the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation, one partner behind the nine-mile project that’s been years in the making.

“There’s so much excitement to see this project finally come to fruition,” Boulton says. The new segment links two iconic and nationally-recognized trails, and makes the network a destination for Iowans and out-of-state visitors. To mark the opening, the Raccoon River Valley Trail Association has organized a bike ride and ribbon cutting on Saturday and Boulton says there are more trails to come.

The High Trestle Trail (Natural Heritage Foundation photo)

“We’re not done yet as a state,” she says. “We’ve got a very big vision.” Linking Lake Red Rock to Saylorville, Eldora to Marshalltown, and filling in gaps across the Great American Rail-Trail are part of that vision. Boulton says developing long-distance, destination trails gets more people outdoors. “As they’re doing that, they’re discovering new places, new restaurants, new stores, new parks, and places that they’ve never been to before,” she says, “and they’re realizing they can make a whole vacation out of it.”

A 2012 study found cyclists and trails generate over 360-million dollars in direct and indirect economic impacts on the state. A new study is underway.

(Rachel Cramer, Iowa Public Radio)

DES MOINES, Iowa – Last year, during the final weeks of summer, there were 54 traffic fatalities in Iowa; 44% involved impairment.* To prevent future tragedies, the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau (GTSB) is partnering with law enforcement across the state to decrease impaired driving. August 16-September 2, agencies will be participating in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over high-visibility enforcement project. You’ll see officers working together to remove impaired drivers/motorcycle riders from the road.

“We want drivers to understand it’s law enforcement’s first priority to keep people safe, so we’re asking everyone to make a plan,” says GTSB’s Law Enforcement Liaison Randy Kunert. “The drive sober/ride sober campaign is an awareness effort to spread the message that impaired driving is illegal, and it takes lives.”

There are plenty of options to get impaired drivers home safely. Designate a sober driver or call a taxi/rideshare service. If available, use your community’s sober ride program. If you see a drunk driver/rider on the road, contact local law enforcement.

GTSB works with city, county, state, and local organizations to develop and implement strategies to reduce deaths and injuries on Iowa’s roadways using federally funded grants.

(Radio Iowa) – Officials in the City of Okoboji have made temporary changes to a key ordinance to assist property owners dealing with significant erosion along the shore of West Lake Okoboji. City Administrator Michael Meyers says it usually takes at least a month to get a lakeshore landscaping permit. but requirements for a public meeting and other administrative steps are being waived. “In the City of Okoboji we had between 10 and 15 just catastrophic lakeshore collapses,” Meyers says. “…Recognizing the emergent situation that we were in, the city made a decision that having a month long process was just too long.” Property owners will still be required to get an engineer’s evaluation of the project and follow other zoning rules.

“Those are all still intact, so it’s not necessarily a blank slate for folks to do whatever they want, but it is an opportunity to make things go a heck of a lot quicker because for some of these landowners, time is not necessarily in their favor,” Meyers says. Lake-adjacent properties in the City of Okoboji are in a zone where landowners are to follow landscaping methods allowed in the ordinance.

“The intent of the City of Okoboji’s lakeshore landscaping ordinance is really to make shorelines appear as before any of us were here,” We’re really promoting native shoreline restorations, deep-rooted plants and just making sure that these lakeshores are really set up for success in the long term.” The shoreline of both West Lake Okoboji and East Lake Okoboji are within the city limits of the City of Okoboji, but Meyers says the majority of intense flood damage has been along the West Lake Okoboji shoreline.

(Radio Iowa) – An 18 year old who’s a frequent camper at the Iowa State Fair is the 2024 Iowa State Fair Queen. Elli Blackford says being crowned at the end of Saturday night’s contest was a surreal moment. “It was just so unbelievable and it’s something I never imagined I could do,” she says. “It was truly a dream come true and I can’t even tell you what was running through my head because it was running at 10,000 miles per hour.” Blackford watched the queen contest as a child, one of the activities she’s enjoyed due to having such close access to the fairgrounds. “I’ve been at the fair 18 years and I’ve camped at least 13 of them,” she says. “It’s just a super fun tradition with our family. I actually camp with my grandparents and my aunt and uncle have a site real close to us.”

Blackford, a 4-Her, has showed cattle — Simmental heifers — at the fair, too. “You get to know so many 4-H and FFA members throughout the entire state, so we really build a community in the barn as a family and as a 4-H group, as a county, being stalled with the people that you’re working with all year long, just building those connections,” she says, “then also having the ability to cheer on your fellow 4-H or FFA members while they’re also doing the same in the stands for you.” Blackford joined a different community this past week as she, along with 102 other Iowa county fair queens, gathered in Des Moines. The group learned the lyrics to “Our State Fair” — featured the State Fair play on Broadway and in the State Fair movies.

2024 Iowa State Fair Queen Elli Blackford of Weldon. (Iowa State Fair photo)

Blackford and the rest of the queens sang it as they rode a trolley down Grand Avenue in Des Moines in this year’s Iowa State Fair parade. “They taught it to us kind of on the buses on the way there. I’d heard it before, but didn’t 100% know all the lyrics. I was able to catch on pretty quick,” Blackford says. “Sometimes it gets in my head and other people will be singing it and I kind of hum along with them.” Blackford is from Weldon, a small town in Clarke County and she graduated from Clarke Community School in Osceola this spring. She’ll be a student at Iowa State University this fall and plans to study animal science and agricultural business. “That career pathway for me right now looks like marketing or sales with either of the two degrees,” she says.

Blackford, the queen of the Clarke County Fair, provided daily reports on “Go Clarke TV” — a video network run by her school — to provide updates on activities during the local fair.

(Sidney, Iowa) – The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office has released a report on arrests occurring from July 29th through August 12th. The entire press release can be found in the link below:

081324 press release

(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors, today (Tuesday), approved a proposal from Camblin Mechanical, Inc., to remove and replace a bad courthouse air conditioning unit in the courtroom, that was causing some people to become overcome with heat exhaustion. Board Chair Mike Olsen…

The also approved an invoice from Camblin Mechanical for repairs to A/C units on the second and third floors of the courthouse, amounting to a little more than $27,538. Supervisor Mark Petersen said faulty work by a contractor, resulted in the units failing. He wanted to make it clear, that he did NOT blame Camblin Mechanical for the issues associated with those units.

In her weekly report to the Board, Montgomery County Engineer Karen Albert said for one thing, they’ve been hauling rock.

She said also, there are road repair and other projects that are, or will soon-be, underway, so please slow down when you approach those crews as they work to make the roads smoother and safer.

In other business, the Board approved the Treasurer’s Semi-Annual Report, with an ending fund balance as of July 31, 2024, of nearly $10, 526, 468. They also discussed and agreed to accept a Letter of Intent from the estate of Rodney Most, to acquire the bordering vacant property known as Walnut Street in Hawthorne. Board Chair Mike Olsen explained…

And, they approved claims payable on August 14^th, in the amount of $560,048.44. West Township resident Jan Norris spoke to the Board during the Public Comment part of their agenda. Here is a transcript of what she had to say:

“Good Morning, I am Jan Norris from West Township. Summit Carbon Transport is planning to kickoff their Phase II public information meetings in Red Oak on Tuesday, Aug 27 at noon at the Red Coach Inn. There will also be a meeting at the Corning Opera House on Mon, Aug 26 at 6:00pm. The public is invited to attend as many meetings as they wish and ask questions.  Summit filed their slide presentation to the docket yesterday.

These 14 new lateral routes will expand Summit’s total project by about 50% in Iowa & are gaining a lot of attention. Corning will be the first official Summit meeting, but last week 200 people showed up in Guthrie Center and 75 in Jefferson to hear the Sierra Club’s presentation.  Sunday night a couple of us held an informal Q&A in Stanton where 35 people stayed for 2 hours asking questions.

Other than Charla & Randy attending the first event in Stanton earlier this spring, I haven’t seen board members showing up to learn more. Two weeks ago the board asked Snyder & Assoc to wait until members had left the room before opening public Q&A. I hope you are not going to ONLY rely on Summit for information. Their meeting on the 27th will be heavy on spin, and skimpy on facts. I would be happy to meet with you individually any time to review what I have learned over the last 3 years of research.

The Free Soil Foundation is holding a meeting at the Viking Center next Tuesday, Aug 20 at 6:30 pm with former Congressman Steve King. Maybe you could announce a possible quorum and be in attendance?

Just an update on the open meetings complaint – last week the County filed their response and I filed a rebuttal. Our case can expect to be on the Iowa Public Information Board agenda on Sept 19. This process is neither pleasant nor easy and is not intended to be adversarial. Our communities are all stronger when we have open and transparent government. I trust that we all agree on that.

Thank you.”

(Sidney, Iowa) – Fremont County Sheriff Kevin Aistrope reports a couple from Hamburg are facing felony charges, following an investigation that began in late July. As we previously reported, on July 25th, the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office received a report at around 8:53-a.m. on that date, about a small child seen alone near the roadway in the 1700 block of Washington Street, in Hamburg. Deputies discovered a 4-year-old child, with reported developmental disabilities, covered in filth and a mixture of both human and animal feces outside the residence. Deputies located another child inside the home. Both children were taken to a nearby hospital for evaluation.

Deputies allege that the parents, 26-year-old Dustin Carl Lee Perry, and 26-year-old Lindsey Barbara Marie Hamilton, both of Shenandoah, left the children in the care of relatives with the direction to keep the 4-year-old in a makeshift cage. Deputies located the cage in the home constructed out of a pack and play, a baby gate roof, and zip ties. Deputies allege that the child was able to escape from the device and left the home without waking the occupants. Deputies discovered a second homemade cage where it is alleged that the child was kept in a walk-in closet in a home in Shenandoah. Both Perry and Hamilton were arrested and charged with Felony Felony Neglect or Abandonment of a Dependent Person, and Child Neglect, an aggravated misdemeanor. Several children were removed from the home by the DHS. Both were being held in the Fremont County Jail without bond, pending a court appearance.

Martha Perry-Culley

Elvin Culley

Also as a result of the investigation, on August 9th, 78-year-old Elvin Leroy Culley, and 61-year-old Martha Karen Perry-Culley, both of Hamburg, were arrested and charged with Felony Neglect or Abandonment of a Dependent Person, and Child Neglect, an aggravated misdemeanor. Both were being held in the Fremont County Jail on $10,000 cash-only bonds, each.

Hamburg Rescue, the Iowa Dept. of Health & Human Services, and Shenandoah Police assisted with the investigation.

(Radio Iowa) – How early is too early? It’s still the heart of summertime, yet many Iowa grocery stores are already offering spooky Halloween decorations and big bags of trick-or-treat candy. Some stores had the orange-and-black boxes of sweets on display in July. Professor Peggy Stover, who directs the University of Iowa’s Marketing Institute and spent 25 years in the grocery industry, says stores are looking for any angle they can find to scare up profits.  “In the old days, when there was a major holiday coming, a month, maybe a month and a half in advance was pretty typical,” Stover says. “Now, we’re seeing — Halloween is a good example. We’re seeing Halloween merchandise in the stores, so it seems like every year it gets earlier and earlier.”

Back-to-school sales started at some Iowa retailers in June, and Stover says she wouldn’t be too surprised if we saw Christmas ornaments appear on the shelves soon. “We’re seeing a faster acceleration being driven mainly by manufacturers and retailers,” Stover says. “In the grocery business, the margins are so thin that anything that they can do to increase the profitability of their operations, I can’t blame them, they’re going to take advantage of it.” Some Iowans might buy Christmas gifts early and hide them until December, but Stover says nobody’s buying Halloween candy in mid-August who’s intent on saving it until late October.

Radio Iowa photo

“A lot of manufacturers are probably offering incentives to entice that impulse purchase,” Stover says, “you know, I see it, I’m going to throw it in the buggy, I wasn’t really looking for candy, but there it is, front and center, toss it in the cart.” Consumers may be mystified when they run across holiday items so far out of context, but she doubts few would actually file a complaint with the manager, not that it would likely have much impact — or would it? “It’s going to take consumers to tell retailers and manufacturers, ‘Enough is enough’,” Stover says. “Let’s go back to being more reasonable in when we’re going to be merchandising holiday items. I remember last year, I think it was January, right after the holidays, I was already seeing Saint Patrick’s.”

She says the best way for Iowans to send a message about Halloween in summer sales is to resist buying the products.

(Ames, Iowa) – The Iowa Transportation Commission today (Tuesday), approved $9.3 million for the fiscal year 2025 State Aviation Program, which includes several subprograms.  The Airport Improvement Program (AIP) will fund $6.3 million for a variety of aviation safety initiatives, system planning, and air service development activities. It will also provide funding for airport development projects at 23 airports in Iowa. Eligible AIP projects include runway, taxiway, and apron development; fuel systems; navigational aids; maintenance of aviation weather systems; runway marking; windsocks; emergency operational repairs; land-use planning; air service initiatives; and the mitigation of obstruction and wildlife hazards at airports. The AIP program is funded through the State Aviation Fund using revenues from aircraft registration fees and aviation fuel taxes.

In this area, AIP projects approved include:

• $13,491 towards the total project cost of $17, 988, for Taxiway Repair at the Arthur N Neu Airport, in Carroll.
• $55, 250 towards the total project cost of $65,000, for Obstruction Mitigation at the Creston Municipal Airport.
• and, $33,500 for the removal of underground storage tanks at the Denison Municipal Airport. The total project cost for which is $67,000.

The Iowa DOT’s Aviation vertical infrastructure programs will provide $3 million for projects at six general aviation airports and eight commercial service airports throughout Iowa. These programs provide funding for the maintenance and development of airport facilities such as terminal buildings, maintenance facilities, and aviation hangars. Vertical infrastructure programs are funded from Rebuild Iowa Infrastructure Fund appropriations.

Iowa DOT Aviation Program Manager Shane Wright notes the FY 2025 program has many good projects that make headway developing an aviation system that supports the economy and important aviation services in the state. “It builds a strong aviation system while leveraging federal, local, and private investment.”

The State Aviation Program supplements local and federal funding sources and seeks to maintain a safe and effective statewide air transportation system. Details on the State Aviation Program funding can be viewed at https://iowadot.gov/aviation/airport-managers-and-sponsors/State-Funding/state-funding-programs