Informational Meetings Scheduled Regarding Proposed Ply-wood Recreational Trail
(Hinton) — An informational meeting regarding the proposed Ply-wood recreational trail is scheduled for this evening. Ply-wood stands for Plymouth and Woodbury Counties. The public is invited to learn more about the proposed trail that would go from Le Mars to Sioux City and connect the towns of Merrill and Hinton.
Tonight’s meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. and will continue until 7:30 p.m. It will be held at the Hinton Community Center. A second meeting is scheduled for Thursday evening and will cover the same information, but will be held at the Kissenger Center – Merrill city hall. That informational meeting is also
scheduled for 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.
Sergeant Bluff School Superintendent Pleas Not Guilty To OWI
SERGEANT BLUFF, Iowa (AP) – A northwest Iowa school superintendent is facing an October trial on accusations of drunken driving.
Dickinson County court records say Sergeant Bluff-Luton Community School District Superintendent Rod Earleywine entered a written plea of not guilty Monday. The charge: operating while under the influence, first offense. His trial
is set to begin Oct. 10.
Earleywine was arrested Aug. 5 in Spirit Lake. The records say Earleywine’s blood alcohol was above the legal limit in two tests.
The school board president has declined to comment about the case. The district website still lists Earleywine as superintendent.
Man Is Stabbed At Iowa State Fair
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say a man has been stabbed at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines.
The Iowa Public Safety Department says the 21-year-old was stabbed around 10:25 p.m. Tuesday in the southwest corner of the fairgrounds. He was taken to Mercy Hospital. His name hasn’t been released.
No arrest has been reported.
It’s the second stabbing in as many years at the fair. Court records say a man was sentenced to 10 years in prison for a gang-related stabbing on Aug. 21 last year.
Eagle Grove Man Charged With Child Pornography
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) – A man in central Iowa has been accused of persuading children to produce pornography that he could share.
Federal court records say 30-year-old Jason Marvets, of Eagle Grove, is scheduled go to on trial Sept. 18 in Cedar Rapids. He’s pleaded not guilty to sexual exploitation of children, coercion or enticement, threats, destruction of records and other charges.
A detention order filed Tuesday says Marvets threatened to expose his young victims as a way to extort pornographic images from them and carried out the threat at least once. The order also says Marvets had one of his victims destroy evidence after Marvets was arrested.
He’s being held without bond.
Wind Farm Opposition
WATERLOO, Iowa (AP) – Black Hawk County supervisors have rejected calls for a temporary ban on wind farms.
The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that none of the supervisors at Tuesday’s meeting made a motion to approve the proposed 90-day moratorium. The group Cedar Valley Citizens for Responsible Wind Energy had sought the moratorium so county officials could get more public input on potential changes to the 2011 ordinance governing wind towers.
Several people who live near where a 70-megawatt wind farm south of Waterloo has been proposed have expressed concern that the turbines could hurt property values, kill bats and birds and cause health issues due to low-frequency noise and other factors.
Board of Supervisors Chairman Frank Magsamen says he thinks the county already has a quality ordinance that wouldn’t benefit from adjustment.
—
Former Davenport Mayor Faces Critics After Posting Confederate Flag On His Facebook Page
DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) – A former Davenport mayor whose posting of a Confederate flag on his Facebook page sparked a social media outcry says he wishes the uproar would go away.
Sixty-four-year-old Phil Yerington posted the flag after Saturday’s clashes between white supremacists and counterdemonstrators in Charlottesville, Virginia.
The flag and Yerington’s online reaction to criticism have been labeled as racist. Elder Dan Teague of the Davenport NAACP told station WQAD that Yerington’s comments were unacceptable, “especially coming from a man that was a police officer here and a former mayor.”
Yerington told The Associated Press Wednesday that he could have responded more softly to the ugly comments and threats but says, “When you attack, I attack back.”
He says he received no complaints of discrimination in his 34 years as a police officer.
—
