Iowa Supreme Court Hears Testimony On Voting
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Supreme Court has heard arguments about a legal challenge to a new state voter identification law and a judge’s ruling that puts several aspects of absentee voting in the law on hold.
Under an injunction issued in July by a judge the state is prohibited from shortening the time to cast absentee ballots from 40 days to 29 days. It is also be barred from requiring that absentee ballots include a voter verification number and from allowing ballots to be thrown out when a local election official determines the voter’s signature doesn’t match one on file.
Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate’s appeal asks the court to overturn the injunction.
Arguments Thursday focused on whether the law causes harm by
disenfranchising voters, especially Latinos who vote absentee in large numbers.
A lawyer for the state says there was no indication in the June
primary that voters couldn’t handle the new restrictions.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady said at the end of arguments that “it’s an important question that needs a quick answer.”
Reward For Missing Student Continues To Rise
BROOKLYN, Iowa (AP) – The reward fund offered for the safe return of a missing University of Iowa student has grown to nearly $316,000.
A spokesman for Crime Stoppers of Central Iowa said Thursday the organization has passed on more than 830 tips to authorities investigating the disappearance of Mollie Tibbetts.
Tibbetts’ father has suggested she might have been abducted from her boyfriend Dalton Jack’s home in Brooklyn, Iowa. The 20-year-old Tibbetts was seen jogging July 18 and her family reported her missing the next day.
Jack’s brother, Blake, told Fox News there were no signs of struggle at the home, adding that Tibbetts is “small, but she would have done something” if she had been attacked.
Dalton Jack says he received a Snapchat message from Tibbetts July 18, after she would have returned from her run. Authorities haven’t found her Fitbit or cellphone.
Attorney For Porn Actress Says He Will Run For President
WASHINGTON (AP) – Michael Avenatti’s crusade for the porn actress taking on the president has already catapulted him to cable news stardom and endeared him to many frustrated liberals.
Now the self-styled “dragon slayer” is taking his message to Iowa Democrats – who will have a huge influence in the 2020 White House race.
And the attorney insists this foray into early-voting terrain is not a stunt.
As the lawyer representing Stormy Daniels, Avenatti has become one of President Donald Trump’s leading critics. But he says he is not just “proposing this to get under the president’s skin.”
For now, Avenatti has plenty of spotlight as top 2020 prospects avoid Iowa. He toured the Iowa State Fair on Thursday and is scheduled for the Democratic Wing Ding in Clear Lake on Friday.
Attempted Murder Charge Dismissed Against Woman
CARTER LAKE, Iowa (AP) – An attempted murder charge against a Carter Lake woman has been dismissed at the request of her alleged victim.
The Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil reports that the charge against 51-year-old Tammy Oberg was dropped Wednesday. Oberg was ordered to pay fees and expenses for court costs.
Oberg had been charged in May after being accused of trying to run over another woman on a bicycle in Carter Lake. Police say she told officers she did it because she believed the victim was riding a stolen bike.
Officers say they found the alleged victim’s bike and cellphone in Oberg’s home.
Carter Lake sits on the Nebraska side of the Missouri River surrounded by Omaha following an 1877 shift in the river, but it remains part of Iowa.
—
Minnesota Woman Charged With Harassment of Iowa Man
FOREST CITY, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say a Minnesota woman who sent 696 text messages to a northern Iowa man in April violated a no-contact order.
Winnebago County District Court records say 34-year-old Katie Christian, of Emmons, Minnesota, is charged with stalking and other crimes. Her arraignment is scheduled for Aug. 24 in Forest City. Attempts to reach her attorney Friday were unsuccessful.
A criminal complaint says she also made 10 phone calls and went to the man’s Lake Mills house three times in an attempt to make contact with him or his daughter.
Farmers Are Anxious About Trade Barriers As Harvest Nears
(Des Moines) — As harvest approaches, farmer anxiety over trade issues is on the rise. Craig Hill is the president of Iowa Farm Bureau.
Iowa ag secretary Mike Naig says Iowa farmers have been very patient with President Trump. But he says that patience may be wearing thin.
Hill’s message to administration officials?
Hill and Naig made those comments in interviews at the Iowa State Fair on Thursday.
(thanks to Ken Anderson – Brownfield Network)
American Idol Winner Attends Iowa State Fair
(Des Moines) — Iowa’s “American Idol” winner helped kick off the 2018 Iowa State Fair by singing the national anthem Thursday morning.
American Idol Winner Maddie Poppe with Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds
Maddie Poppe (POP-ee) of Clarksville will perform on the same State Fair Grandstand stage the first evening of NEXT year’s fair, August 8th. A year ago, Poppe was wondering if she’d ever get a break.
Poppe’s concert next year — on the state fair’s largest stage — won’t be her first time singing at the fair. She and her sister competed in the Iowa State Fair’s Bill Riley Talent Search
After living in Los Angeles for five months, Poppe is now on an American Idol concert tour. She told the state fair crowd she misses home.
Poppe says she is looking forward to returning to Iowa to sing at next year’s Iowa State Fair in front of her friends and neighbors of Iowa.
Poppe signed autographs and posed for pictures after the opening ceremony. Her boyfriend and fellow American Idol contestant Caleb Lee Hutchinson joined her for the events at the fair.
