Snow Plows Trying To Clear Roads After Snow Storm
(Le Mars) — Snow plows have been out on the highways trying to keep the roads clear after Le Mars received nearly eight inches of snow. Light snow continues to fall along with those strong winds. Although the blizzard warning has now expired, conditions are slow to improve. Plymouth County Engineer Tom Rohe says
his county road crews are doing their best to clear the roads.
Man Sent To Prison For Stealing From Employer
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – A man has been imprisoned for stealing from his employer in northwest Iowa.
45-year-old Scott Chamberlain was sentenced in Sioux City on Thursday to 10 years in prison. Chamberlin had pleaded guilty to theft.
Court documents say that, beginning in January 2009, Chamberlain took a skid loader and other equipment from W.A. Klinger and kept them at his home in Kingsley. The documents also say he charged more than $10,000 in personal
purchases on company credit cards. He’s been ordered to pay $10,000 to his former employer.
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Iowa State Patrol Chief Announces Retirement
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The leader of the Iowa State Patrol is retiring after a 32-year career with the force.
The service retirement of Col. Michael Van Berkum was approved Monday and will be effective March 3. He had been the patrol’s chief since 2015.
In a statement to The Associated Press, Department of Public Safety Commissioner Roxann Ryan says Iowans should thank Van Berkum for his decades of
service. She says he embodies the best of the patrol – “leadership, integrity and dedicated service for the public good.”
Ryan has not named a replacement for Van Berkum, but the department says more information will be released when he retires next week.
Three of Van Berkum’s classmates from the department’s 1985 academy class will also retire the same day. A Rock Valley native, Van Berkum served the patrol in a number of roles as an officer and supervisor.
People Concerned About University of Iowa Scholarships Gone
AMES, Iowa (AP) – Students, parents and legislators are all unhappy about the University of Iowa’s move to eliminate 2,500 scholarships in response to funding cuts, but there is disagreement about who is to blame.
The Iowa City Press-Citizen (https://icp-c.com/2lARkSK ) reports there’s wide disagreement on whether the target of such exasperation should be the state Legislature’s Republican leadership, Gov. Terry Branstad or university president Bruce Harreld.
The state Legislature approved an $18 million mid-year cut to the three public universities the Iowa Board of Regents oversees last month.
To address long-term effects of the cuts, Harreld is ending $4.3 million in non-merit, non-needs-based scholarships the university began offering before the 2015-16 academic year.
Senate Democrats say they support legislation to give the university additional funds, but Republican legislative leaders have said it should use part of $2 billion the university’s foundation recently raised.
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ACLU Defends Transgender Student
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A civil liberties group is taking up the case of a central Iowa transgender high school student who was ordered to wash “love trumps hate” written on his arm or be sent home. The American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa says the incident happened in November at Newton High School. The ACLU says a teacher also repeatedly referred to the student as “girl,” even though he openly identifies as male.
Republican Governors Tell Congress Not To Scrap Health Care
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Republican governors are sending a clear message to Congress: Don’t scrap the health care law without a viable alternative. Seven Republican governors from all regions of the country are presenting a proposal to the Republican Governors Association meeting in Washington on Saturday.
