(Red Oak, IA) – The Montgomery County Board of Supervisors breezed through their agenda this (Tuesday) morning. The Board approved the appointment of Alyssa Resh as Tax Deputy for the Treasurer’s Office, for a period of 10-months, with her term expiring 12/31/2026, and, they passed a resolution setting the Medical Examiner Fees for 2026-27. Here’s a portion of the resoluton, as read by Supervisor Alex Burton…

In other business, the Montgomery County Supervisors passed a resolution authorizing the Sheriff’s Office to assess an additional monthly fee for the safekeeping of firearms taken into custdy by court order. Sheriff Jon Spunaugle said the fee does not apply to weapons taken during the commission of a felony.

The fee amounts to an extra Five-dollars per month, per fire arm, for the owner of the firearm, from the date it is seized until it lawfully released or otherwise disposed of in accordance with the law.

The Board also received a weekly report/update from County Engineer Karen Albert.

MASSENA, IA – FEBRUARY 10, 2026 – Officials with the City of Massena today (Tuesday), announced the City was awarded a $24,999 Quality of Life grant, for their inclusive community park project. The grant is from the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation National Paralysis Resource Center’s 2025 Direct Effect 2nd Cycle. In all, over $1.14-million in grants for 56 projects were awarded. The Quality of Life Grants Program supports nonprofit organizations that support individuals living with paralysis. Since the Quality of Life Grants Program’s inception, more than 4,100 grants totaling $50 million have been awarded. Funding for this program was made possible through a cooperative agreement with the Administration for Community Living.

The Reeve Foundation’s National Paralysis Resource Center has several grants under the Quality of Life program, awarding grants in different category areas, varying in different amounts. The Priority Impact grants program funds organizations to support a wide range of projects and activities that will impact individuals living with paralysis and their families. Dan McNeal, Director of the QLF Grants Program at the Reeve Foundation, said in a news release, “These grants represent more than funding—they represent freedom, possibility, and dignity for individuals living with paralysis. At the heart of our mission is a commitment to improving everyday life for our community. We’re proud to support organizations nationwide that are expanding access and creating programs built on accessibility, care, and respect.”

The City of Massena will use the grant to install inclusive play equipment that allows individuals with disabilities and sensory sensitivities to play and interact alongside others. Grant funds will also support accessible surfacing that makes the playground safer and more usable for all abilities. City officials say “The City of Massena is truly honored to receive this funding and sincerely thanks the Reeve Foundation for its generosity. The Reeve Foundation’s $24,999 award is helping make inclusive play opportunities a reality in our community.”

About the Reeve Foundation:

The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation is dedicated to curing spinal cord injury by funding innovative research and improving the quality of life for individuals and families impacted by paralysis. By uniting the brightest minds in the field, we are working tirelessly to accelerate scientific discoveries across the field of spinal cord research by investing in labs across the globe. Additionally, through a cooperative agreement with the Administration for Community Living, the Reeve Foundation’s National Paralysis Resource Center (NPRC) promotes the health, well-being, and independence of people living with paralysis, providing comprehensive information, resources, and referral services assisting over 139,000 individuals and families since its launch in 2002. The Reeve Foundation is committed to elevating our community’s voices and needs to achieve greater representation and independence. We meet all 20 of the Better Business Bureau’s standards for charity accountability and hold the BBB’s Charity Seal.

For more information, please visit our website at www.ChristopherReeve.org or call 800-225-0292.

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Officials with the City of Massena say the City’s mission “Is to provide high-quality services, safe infrastructure, and vibrant public spaces that support the health, well-being, and prosperity of all residents. We are committed to responsible stewardship of resources and long-term investment in facilities that strengthen our community. We believe that accessibility and inclusion are fundamental to public service. By reducing barriers and ensuring that facilities meet the needs of individuals of all ages and abilities, we affirm our responsibility to create spaces where every resident can participate fully in civic and recreational life. Through thoughtful planning, collaboration with schools, regional partners, and community organizations, and active engagement with residents, the City seeks to build a welcoming environment for all. Our mission is to cultivate a community where families can thrive, children can grow and learn, and neighbors can connect through shared spaces and opportunities.”

For more information, please contact Dawn at City Hall at 712-779-2295.

(Creston, IA) – A man from Union County was arrested Monday evening, in Creston. According to the Creston Police Department, 38-year-old Wesley Gene Keeler, Jr., of Creston, was arrested on an Outside Agency Warrant. Keeler, Jr., was transported to the Union County Jail and held without bond until seen by a Judge.

WATERLOO, Iowa – The Iowa Dept. of Corrections reports Mark Desmond Kelly, who was convicted of Robbery 2nd Degree, Theft 1st Degree, and Possession of Controlled Substance – Methamphetamine in Black Hawk County, failed to report back to the Waterloo Residential Correctional Facility as required on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026.

Kelly is a 54-year-old, 5’7″, 209-pound Black male. He was admitted to the work release facility on Nov. 6, 2025.

Mark Desmond Kelly (IA DOC photo)

Persons with information on Kelly’s whereabouts should contact local police.

(Radio Iowa) – The National Weather Service’s summary for 2025 shows the number of confirmed tornadoes in Iowa was below average in 2025. N-W-S meteorologist Kristi Carter says there were 32 confirmed twisters. “The average is around 50, and especially lower than say two years ago in 2024 when we had 125,” Carter says. There were no reported injuries are deaths from tornadoes in 2025. There were 18 confirmed tornadoes in July of last year, the most of any month, and 12 of those happened on July 11th. Carter says the spring months are usually the ones that see the most tornadic activity.

“Late April, May, June climatologically is our highest. It’s not uncommon to get tornadoes in, you know, July, August, really any time of year, we’ve had a tornado at some point in time,” she says. “But it just so happened that this year, like this past year, 2025, July was kind of our busier month.” Carter says we had fewer severe weather events through the springtime than in past years. Tornadoes are measured on a scale starting at zero, going up to the most severe which are rated a five. A majority of last year’s tornadoes were at the bottom of the scale.

“We had 22 or the E-F-zero or E-F-U, so they didn’t hit any damage indicators in order for them to be rated. We had seven E-F-1s and three E-F-2s and nothing higher than E-F-2,” Carter says. The longest path for a tornado was 20 miles for one that touched down in Fremont and Page County. The peak hour for tornadoes in 2025 was 3 p-m.

(Radio Iowa) – A bill that’s cleared an Iowa Senate subcommittee would let couples getting married in Iowa sign a waiver of Iowa’s no-fault divorce law to indicate they would only seek a divorce for specific reasons, like adultery or abuse. However, the bill’s future is uncertain. Republican Senator Jesse Green of Boone says the goal of his bill is to promote marriage.

“If family is not supported, government is left picking up the pieces,” Green said. “…Family is the best place to educate and nurture the next generation.” Republican Senator Scott Webster of Bettendorf joined Green to advance the bill out of their subcommittee, but Webster says the bill must be completely rewritten. Webster says he wants to preserve Iowa’s no-fault divorce law, but create “at fault” divorce in cases involving division of assets and child custody when one spouse is clearly at fault.

“I don’t think we should be necessarily looking at custody 50/50 in a case where there’s been domestic abuse,” Webster said. “…Maybe the husband or the wife is holding all the money and saying: ‘Good luck trying to leave, I have all the money.'” During yesterday’s subcommittee hearing, Chuck Hurley, vice president of The Family Leader, was one of two people who testified in favor of Green’s original concept.

“Strengthening the importance, gravity and permanence of marriage is desperately needed,” Hurley said. “…Divorce should be discouraged and avoided, when possible.” Des Moines attorney Stacey Warren is among nine people who testified against the bill.”Probably the divorce attorneys’ full employment act, times ten,” she said. Laura Hessburg of the Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Assault says it would be dangerous for some victims to seek a divorce after they signed a waiver of Iowa’s no-fault divorce law.

“Notably ‘no fault’ divorces have been beneficial to spouses in abusive relationships,” Hessburg said, “and that’s not surprising, as any barriers to divorce prolongs an individual’s forced involvement with an abusive partner.” In 1970, Iowa became the second state in the country to enact a “no fault” divorce law.

In 2013, seven Republicans in the Iowa House unsuccessful sought to make most parents with kids under the age of 18 ineligible for a no-fault divorce. That 2013 bill would have forced parents with minor children seeking a divorce to prove a spouse was guilty of adultery, had been sent to prison on a felony conviction, had physically or sexually abused someone in the family, or had abandoned the family for at least a year.

(Radio Iowa) – Local governments would be banned from adopting civil rights protections that are broader than the Iowa Civil Rights Act under a bill advanced by a House subcommittee. Governor Reynolds signed a law last year that removed gender identity as a characteristic protected under Iowa’s civil rights law. Coralville and Iowa City have adopted resolutions providing local protections for gender identity. Katie Freeman, a member of Coralville’s city council, says the bill interferes with local officials’ ability to respond to needs in their community.

“The 2025 legislation is bad enough, but this one continues to overreach right into my town,” Freeman said. “A community, a city, a county have a right to self govern based on the needs of their individual community.” Danny Carroll of The Family Leader urged legislators to pass the bill to strike down those local policies.

“With 99 different counties and over 900 different towns and communities,” Carroll said, “it does make sense that certain issues would have broad and consistent application across the state and not vary from one community to the next or from one county to the next.” Republican Representative Steve Holt says different civil rights protections in different Iowa jurisdictions create confusion for schools and businesses.

Republicans on another House subcommittee OK’d a bill that says Iowans are allowed to raise guide and instruct a child in a manner consisted with the child’s sex at birth. Keenan Crow of One Iowa, an L-G-B-T-Q advocacy group, says the bill would legalize conversation therapy. “Conversion therapy is, in fact, not a therapy at all. It is torture,” Crow said. “The stories I have are too numerous to get through, but these are people who were institutionalized, humiliated, and even put through electro shock therapies in order to change who they were.”

Amber Williams is a lobbyist for the Christian conservative group Inspired Life, says the proposal clarifies Iowa’s child welfare law and protects parents of a child experiencing gender dysphoria. “Parents are responsible for their children and should not fear government intervention for acting in good faith,” she said.”Protecting parental rights is how we protect children and that is why this bill matters.”

Over 150 people gathered in the Iowa Capitol’s rotunda to protest both bills.

(Creston, IA) – One person was transported to the hospital in Creston, Monday afternoon, following a single-vehicle accident. According to the Creston Police Department, 82-year-old Ronald Dale Brammer, of Prescott, was driving a Dodge pickup truck and turning north onto Walnut Street, when his vehicle struck a parked van in front of 609 S. Walnut Street. The accident happened at around 2:10-p.m.

Brammer told police he blacked-out prior to the collision. He was transported to the Greater Regional Medical Center by EMS for treatment of unknown possible injuries and/or medical condition. Damage from the collision was estimated at $6,000 altogether.

No citations were issued.

(Radio Iowa)- An Iowa Senate subcommittee has advanced a bill supporters say would prevent abortion pills from being mailed into Iowa by requiring an in-person visit to an Iowa physician before abortion pills can be prescribed. Pulse Life Advocates executive director Maggie DeWitte — a spokesperson Iowa Pro-Life Leaders — urged lawmakers to pass the bill.

“While we would support taking this drug completely off the market, in the meantime we want some common sense safeguards to ensure the safety of women who are ingesting this drug.” Iowa Catholic Conference executive director Tom Chapman says abortion pills are readily available online and the latest state data indicates 70 percent of abortions in Iowa are induced by medication.

“Obviously our group doesn’t support abortion, but it seems best for women to see a medical professional before taking these pills,” Chapman said. “In our view, it doesn’t interfere with the doctor-patient relationship. It actually requires one.” Medical groups say the bill requires Iowa physicians prescribing abortion pills to share inaccurate information about abortion reversal drugs.

Dr. Teresa Fuller, who works at clinics in Perry and Dallas Center, says that damages the doctor-patient relationship.”I took an oath to first do no harm,” Fuller said, “and I think lying to my patients does immense harm.” Seth Brown, a lobbyist for the Iowa Medical Society, says the bill would expose doctors to lawsuits. “We do feel like this will target physicians in an already unstable practice environment,” Brown said, “so we do want to be mindful of that as we’re looking at (the question): is Iowa a welcoming place for OB-GYNs.”

Two Republican senators on the subcommittee voted to advance the bill, however both suggested the bill will be changed as it moves through the senate. Senate Democratic Leader Janice Weiner, the other member of the subcommittee, voted against the bill.