The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest on Tuesday of 52-year old Kim Lavere Hester. The Casey man was taken into custody on a felony charge of OWI 3rd Offense, a Serious Misdemeanor Possession of a Controlled Substance charge, and Simple Misdemeanor charges that include Driving Under Suspension and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Hester was taken to the Cass County Jail where he was released the following Wednesday, on $5,000 bond.

The Sheriff’s Office said also, that on Monday, January 18th, they will be closed due to plumbing repair. They anticipate being open again on Tuesday, January 19th.

One person was injured during a rollover accident this (Thursday) morning, in Montgomery County. Sheriff’s officials say Tiffany Meier, of Emerson, suffered minor injuries, and was transported by Red Oak Rescue to the Montgomery County Memorial Hospital, after the 2001 Dodge pickup she was driving hit a patch of frost and went out of control before rolling over and landing on its top, west of Red Oak.

The accident happened at around 8:40-a.m. in the 1400 block of 200th Street. The pickup was totaled in the crash. A county road sign was also damaged.

(12:40-p.m. News)

Representative Tom Moore, a Republican from Griswold, was sworn-in to the Iowa Legislature Monday, during a ceremony in the Iowa House chamber. He took the oath of office just as the second session of the 86th General Assembly kicked off at the Capitol in Des Moines. Moore won a special election for House District 21 in December. He replaced Jack Drake, who died suddenly in October, at the age of 81.

The 2016 Iowa legislative session kicked off this week amid the traditional pomp and circumstance including speeches by legislative leaders, Governor Branstad’s Condition of the State address and the Chief Justice of the Iowa Supreme Court’s Condition of the Judiciary speech.

Rep. Moore taking the oath of office.

Rep. Moore says that balancing the state’s budget and quickly setting education funding are among his top priorities: “The state needs to budget just like Iowa families and businesses do,” said Rep. Moore. “That means we must continue to spend less than the state collects, and fight against using one-time money to fund ongoing expenses.

Additionally, the House will look to set school funding as quickly as possible. It is important to our local school districts that we get this done early, but it is equally important that they can depend on the commitments the Legislature makes.”

The legislative session is slated to last 100 days, ending April 19th. Last session the Iowa House approved a state aid increase just two weeks into the session only to see it languish in the Iowa Senate until spring.

During the current session, Rep. Moore can be reached at tom.moore@legis.iowa.gov or through the House switchboard at (515) 281-3221.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest Wednesday night, of 36-year old Michael Wayne England, of Emerson. England was taken into custody under the authority of a Page County warrant charging him with Failure to Appear in court on an original charge of assault, that allegedly took place Nov. 15th.  England was being held in the Mills County Jail on $300 bond.

Officials with the Iowa Lottery said Thursday, a $2-million winning Powerball ticket was purchased in western Iowa. Lottery spokesperson Mary Neubauer says a total of seven tickets purchased in Iowa came within one number of having at least a share of the jackpot. One of those tickets purchased at the Casey’s General Store in Onawa, won $2-million. The ticket matched the first 5 numbers but missed the Powerball. However, the person who bought the ticket also selected the Power Play option, which doubled the prize to $2-million. The Onawa ticket was one of eight across the country that each won a $2-million prize.

Because the Onawa Casey’s Store sold the winning ticket, it will receive a $2,000 bonus. Six other Iowa tickets were also one number away from the jackpot. One of the tickets, worth $100,000, was sold at the B-W Gas and Convenience Store, in Walnut. The winners had not yet stepped forward, as of late Thursday morning.

Lottery officials say people bought more than $12 million in Powerball tickets in Iowa for Wednesday’s drawing. The buyers of tickets sold in California, Florida and Tennessee will share the estimated $1.6 billion jackpot or the $983.5 million cash option. The odds of winning the jackpot were about 1 in 292.2 million.

Shenandoah police are investigating the death of an infant who was found unresponsive at a local daycare center. Shenandoah Police Chief Kris Grebert confirms the incident occurred in the 200 block of West Lowell on Wednesday. The caller to 911 said the infant was unresponsive. E-M-S and police responded. The child was taken to Shenandoah Medical Center and later died. Chief Grebert says the Iowa Department of Human Services and the State Medical Examiner’s Office are involved in the investigation.

“We did make a call to DHS and to the state because this is a state-licensed daycare where this happened,” he says. “We are ongoing in our investigation on the cause. The coroner was notified and we’re working with them on the cause of the death.” The infant’s name has not been released.

(Radio Iowa)

Two people were transported to St. Anthony’s Hospital in Carroll, following an accident early this (Thursday) morning, about nine-miles north of Audubon. The Sheriff’s Department say 18-year old Brianna Lee Schwab, of Audubon, was driving a 2005 Dodge Dakota pickup southbound on Highway 71 at around 1-a.m., when she hit a patch of ice.

The pickup went into the west ditch and rolled over, landing on its top passenger side before coming to rest on its wheels. Schwab, and her passenger, 21-year old Jayme Allen Brower, of Defiance, were transported to the hospital.

Damage to the vehicle was estimated at $10,000. Deputies cited Schwab for Failure to Maintain control. Brower was cited for Open Container as a passenger. The accident remains under investigation. Deputies from the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office assisted at the scene.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say deputies have found a missing Sioux City woman lying in a snow-covered field in rural Woodbury County. The 24-year-old woman was last seen Sunday after leaving her job in Dakota City, Nebraska. Friends and relatives reported her missing on Monday. Her cellphone location transmission led two deputies to her Tuesday on a farmstead near Moville.

Authorities say Shaniqwa Hayes was found conscious but unresponsive. She was taken to a Sioux City hospital. The two Woodbury County officers, Deputy David Hansen and Lt. Tony Wingert, said Wednesday they found a faint footprint 15 yards in front of her car at the farmstead and followed footprints to Hayes, who was lying in snow near a grain bin. Wingert estimated that Hayes walked at least 100 yards from her car.

Eager Iowans who are hoping for a tax refund can start filing their returns as soon as next week. Filing season officially opens January 19th and ends -this year- on April 18th. Christopher Miller, the Iowa spokesman for the Internal Revenue Service, says there’s plenty of free filing help available. “You can do it online for free by going to our website (www.irs.gov), or you can go to a volunteer income tax assistance site,” Miller says. “These are organizations within your community, like AARP, that do tax counseling for the elderly.”

He says electronic filing remains the best way for Iowans to complete their returns. “That insures that you’re getting all of the credits and deductions that you have coming to you and it insures that all the math is done correctly,” Miller says. “Generally speaking, it’s a more accurate return.”

Plus, he says e-filing will speed up a refund, if you have one coming. He suggests Iowans should start getting their financial documents together now, like charitable donation receipts and health care information. Miller says one -new- document you’ll need this year is the 1095-A, B or C, which you should have received if you’re getting health insurance under the Affordable Care Act.

(Radio Iowa)

More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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