(Des Moines, IA) – Sheriff’s officials in Polk County are requesting the public’s assistance in identifying the driver involved in a hit-and-run crash that injured two Des Moines residents. Authorities said Wednesday (11/12), that at around 2:45-p.m. on November 3rd, 2025, a husband and wife were riding their recumbent tricycles southbound on N.W. 26th Street near the intersection of N.W. 54th Avenue. As the couple attempted a left turn onto N.W. 54th Avenue, their tricycles were struck by a southbound vehicle.

The victims – identified as 69-year-old Kathleen VanGundy, and 68-year-old David VanGundy, both of Des Moines – were thrown from their tricycles. Kathleen VanGundy suffered minor injuries. David VanGundy suffered serious injuries.

The Sheriff’s Office says the suspect vehicle may be a 2011-2016 KIA Sportage, possibly silver in color. The vehicle/driver fled the scene continuing southbound on N.W. 26th Street into Des Moines. The vehicle will likely have noticeable damage to the front passenger side, according to the Sheriff’s Office. Detectives are urging anyone with information about the crash or the suspect vehicle to come forward. Tips may be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers of Central Iowa at 515-223-1400 or online at https://www.crimestoppersofcentraliowa.com.

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office appreciates the public’s cooperation in helping bring closure to this investigation and ensure accountability for those responsible.

(Creston, IA) – Officials with the Creston Police Department report a Creston man was arrested at his residence Wednesday afternoon on a warrant for drug charges. 53-year-old Jason Kelley Frazier was arrested at around 3:25-p.m., on the warrant for Distribution of Methamphetamine, and Aiding and Abetting. Frazier was being held without bond in the Union County Jail.

And, early this (Thursday) morning, Creston Police arrested 30-year-old Jameson Chase Cox, of Creston, for Public Intoxication/1st offense. Cox was taken into custody at around 12:01-a.m., and was being held without bond in the Union County Jail until seen by a judge.

(Atlantic, IA) – A judge in the case of former Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Bailey Smith, Wednesday (Nov. 12th), set her trial date in Cass County District Court, as Jan. 27, 2026, beginning at 9:30-a.m.  The 33-year-old Smith waived her preliminary hearing. Judge Jennifer Benson-Bahr set Smith’s arraignment for 9-a.m. Dec. 8th, and a Pre-Trial Conference will be held on Jan. 12th, beginning at 9-a.m.

An arrest warrant for Smith was issued on Oct. 8th, the same day she turned herself-in on felony charges that include: Ongoing criminal conduct – unlawful activity; Theft in the 1st Degree; Fraudulent Practice in the 1st Degree, and Unauthorized use of a Credit Card (for a loss of more than $10,000). Bailey Smith posted 10-percent of a $100,000 bond on Oct. 8th, and was released pending her court proceedings.

Bailey Smith (2023 file photo)

Previously reported:

• Court documents state that between January 2020 and August 2025, while serving as the Executive Director of the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, Smith made approximately 761 personal transactions with chamber funds. These transactions reportedly totaled $26,913 of losses to the chamber. Smith allegedly admitted to $6,632 of theft to the chamber board in a letter, court records show.
• Between the dates of November 2022 and August 2025, Smith began knowingly making entries into the record of the chamber that she knew were false to make the chamber general account appear solvent and to pay bills that should have been paid with funds that were misappropriated, to allegedly cover her theft of chamber funds, court documents state.
• According to court records during this time period Bailey made approximately 47 bank transfers between the chamber’s four bank accounts which totaled approximately $76,215.
• Smith reportedly admitted in a letter to the chamber board that she had transferred money from the chamber RAGBRAI account and that it had not been “moved back to where it belonged” and that the money “should have never been moved in the first place,” court documents state.

The Atlantic Chamber of Commerce said Smith had been placed on unpaid administrative leave August 29, 2025, due to concerns over financial matters. An internal review that was conducted resulted in her termination, and subsequent charges.

Denison, IA – Officials with Project Harmony, a recognized leader in child advocacy, announced Wednesday, the opening of their newest satellite location at Senior Life Solutions – located East of the main campus at Crawford County Memorial Hospital in Denison. The expansion, according to the organization, marks a significant step in increasing access to vital services for children and families in the Denison community and surrounding areas.  Last year, Project Harmony opened its first satellite location in Atlantic.

Project Harmony serves as a critical resource for children and families in crisis, currently supporting Douglas and Sarpy Counties in Nebraska and 16 counties across Southwest Iowa. The Denison location represents a deepening partnership with Crawford County Memorial Hospital, aimed at ensuring comprehensive, community-based care for children who have experienced abuse or neglect.  Project Harmony CEO Gene Klein says “Our partnership with Crawford County Memorial Hospital allows us to bring life-changing services closer to families who need them most. By working together, we’re not only expanding access but also strengthening the safety net for children and families throughout the region.”

An open house for the new satellite location at 2540 N Avenue, in Denison (the Senior Life Solutions building), will take place November 18th, beginning with a tour at 3-p.m., and a presentation at 4-p.m.  Visitors can learn about the services offered through Project Harmony’s Child Advocacy Center, the referral process, and how they are partnering with Crawford County Memorial Hospital to meet the needs of the community.  Attendees will have the opportunity to explore the facility, meet key members of Project Harmony and Crawford County Memorial Hospital, and gain insight into how these services will positively impact children and families in the region. Refreshments and snacks will be provided.

Crawford County Memorial Hospital CEO Erin Muck expressed enthusiasm for the partnership, saying “We are excited to collaborate with Project Harmony to provide essential child advocacy services in our community. Together, we can ensure that children in Southwest Iowa have access to the care and support they deserve.”  The expansion, according to Project Harmony, demonstrates a commitment to their mission of ending the cycle of child abuse and neglect through effective collaboration and a multidisciplinary approach. The satellite location in Denison will provide a welcoming and accessible space where children and families can find hope and healing.

For more information about Project Harmony’s services, please visit www.ProjectHarmony.com

(Radio Iowa) – If you haven’t made an “Iowa Nice” gesture in a while, today’s the day. This (Thursday) is World Kindness Day, and the action doesn’t have to be anything expensive or dramatic, just kind. Iowa State University psychology professor Douglas Gentile says even -thinking- kind thoughts can have a powerful effect. He says a recent I-S-U study involved sending students onto campus with the instructions they were to wish people well — in their minds. “As they saw different people, they just think, ‘I wish for that person to be happy. I wish for that person to be happy,’ but not saying it out loud, just thinking it in their head,” Gentile says. “Then they came back into the lab after doing this and they were less anxious, less depressed, had a greater sense of social connection, greater sense of empathy for other people.”

Gentile says the simple act of wishing happiness for others, and really meaning it, makes people feel happier themselves. “One of my favorite studies about this actually asked people to just come up with their own things for two weeks that they can just, once a day, do something nice for someone else,” Gentile says. “That could be as simple as holding a door for someone, that could be buying them a coffee, that could be giving someone a phone call that you haven’t talked to in a while because you know they’d like to hear from you.” That study also featured a separate group of people who were told to perform nice gestures for themselves, things like taking a bubble bath or buying themselves a tasty treat.

“But if they were doing something nice for themselves, it actually didn’t help them at all, which is surprising because there’s such a focus on self-care and coping strategies and things like that,” Gentile says, “but in fact, when we do things for others, that’s actually what makes us happier, much more than when we do something nice for ourselves.” The rationale is, if you continue making a daily effort to do something nice for someone else, it’ll become a trend. “Well, it’s certainly what brain science would tell us,” Gentile says, “that every time you do something is one more learning trial, and after enough learning trials, yes, things become automatic, they become what we call habits.”

It might be a good habit to spend less time on social media. Gentile says: “It’s almost impossible not to make comparisons on social media, which can lead us to feel envy, jealously, anger and disappointment in response to what we see others post. These emotions disrupt our sense of well-being.”

(Radio Iowa) – The Board of Regents has approved the bylaws for the Center for Intellectual Freedom that lawmakers required to be created at the University of Iowa. Board member Christine Hensley led the effort. “We realized fairly quickly that the legislation in some areas was vague. And so we tried to be sensitive to that and had questions with the appropriate people along the way,” Hensley says. During the Board of Regents meeting Wednesday, Hensley says they did their best to put the bylaws together. “After having conversations with legal counsel and staff. Determined that the best approach for the bylaws would be to keep them simple and maybe understanding also that we would maybe miss or not address every single thing. So this is the start,” Hensley says. “I would anticipate that maybe in the long run there might be an amendment or two. I have no idea at this point what that might be.”

She says they tried to address how the center moves forward operationally, and says there is a lot of interest in the center throughout the country. Hensley says there’s been concern that other like centers have ended up not being successful because they diverge to something that was not really anticipated. Regent Robert Cramer talked about his view of the center. “I think the goal is, is to raise the level of civic, both knowledge and engagement, by our students,” he says. Cramer says the idea is to impact the entire campus. “But then also with the long term intent of bringing people of different, adding more debate to our campus, you know where people of different sides can view different opinions and we can let the students, grapple with those things,” he says.

Some Democratic lawmakers have criticized the new center, calling it ideologically motivated.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Police in Red Oak, late Wednesday night, arrested a man on a trio of charges. Authorities say 49-year-old Michael Lee LaFollette, of Red Oak, was taken into custody at around 11:55-p.m. in the 1600 block of E. Summit Street, on Simple Misdemeanor charges that include: Harassment in the 3rd degree; Trespass/3rd offense, and Interference with Official Acts. LaFollette was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $300 bond.

[New York, NY] – ByHeart a next-generation baby nutrition company, has announced an expansion of its voluntary recall, to include all batches of ByHeart Whole Nutrition Infant Formula cans and Anywhere Pack™ nationwide. Company officials says their action was being taken in close collaboration with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

At least 15 babies in 12 states were hospitalized since August, according to federal health officials. All products by the brand have been recalled, and parents are advised to stop using the formula and to dispose of it.

ByHeart produces formula powder at a plant in Allerton, Iowa, along with facilities in Oregon and Pennsylvania. It is canned in Portland and distributed from there. No deaths have been reported. No cases of infant botulism have been reported in Iowa so far.

Consumers who have purchased ByHeart Whole Nutrition Infant Formula cans and Anywhere Pack™ should immediately discontinue use and dispose of the product.

If your infant is experiencing symptoms related to infant botulism, contact your health care provider immediately.

(Radio Iowa) – The four Iowans who serve in the U-S House have voted for the spending plan to reopen the federal government. Congresswoman Ashley Hinson, who represents Iowa’s second district, released a video statement. “Democrats kept us shutdown for over 40 days. They left our military and their families in the lurch. They forced air safety officials to go without pay,” Hinson said,” …all while attempting to use people’s health care as ‘leverage.'” Democrats had been pushing for a deal to include health care subsidies for Americans with higher incomes who live in states with where insurance costs are high.

“Health care should never be used as leverage, in my mind, because I know this is not a game to Americans. To Iowans it’s not a game,” Hinson said. “…Now that the government is reopening, I think we should all be working together on some bipartisan solutions and reforms that will actually lower premiums.” Congressman Randy Feenstra, who represents Iowa’s fourth district, says Democrats were pushing an out-of-touch agenda and the shutdown was a political stunt that caused unnecessary harm to Iowa families, farmers, seniors and small businesses.

Congressman Zach Nunn represents Iowa’s third district. Nunn says the deal the president signed last (Wednesday) night was on the table more than a month ago and his Democratic colleagues need to understand the gridlock of the past 43 days cost Iowans who missed paychecks, lost access to services and worried about how to feed their families. First district Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks says she voted to keep the government open because in a shutdown, nobody wins and the American people lose.

The top Democrat in the House says House Republicans are burying their heads in the sand and have failed to address the affordability crisis faced by millions of Americans buying insurance policies for next year. The Senate’s Republican leader has promised to hold a vote — in the Senate — on that issue by the second week of December.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds has announced flags flying at half staff today (Thursday) on state owned facilities are being lowered to honor former Vice President Dick Cheney as well as a Marshalltown lawyer who served in the Iowa Senate for a dozen years.

Former state Senator Larry McKibben died Sunday at the age of 78. He graduated from the University of Northern Iowa in 1970 with a political science degree and earning a law degree from the University of Iowa in 1972, McKibben returned to his hometown of Marshalltown to practice law. He was first elected to the Iowa Senate in 1996 and served three terms before retiring from the legislature in early 2009. McKibben later served six years on the Board of Regents and led a task force that examined tuition costs at the three state universities.

Former State Senator Larry McKibben (R-Marshalltown) (Board of Regents photo)

McKibben’s funeral will be held at one o’clock this (Thursday) afternoon at the First Methodist Church in Marshalltown. Flags nationally will remain lowered until sunset on November 20th, the day of former Vice President Cheney’s funeral.