Iowa National Guard Leader Delivers “Condition Of The Guard” Speech To Legislature
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The head of the Iowa National Guard says nearly 1,700 positions have been opened up to women this year following a federal policy change.
Major General Timothy Orr told the Iowa General Assembly on Wednesday the spots became available after Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced in late 2015 that women in the U.S. armed forces may serve in any position, including combat roles.
Orr announced the development during his annual “Condition of the Guard” address at the Capitol. The speech included the latest figures on active duty and training. The guard currently has 15 soldiers and airmen deployed around the world.
Orr also noted Kosovo will open the first-ever foreign consulate office in Iowa. It is scheduled to open Friday in downtown Des Moines.
Work Release Inmate Escapes
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Corrections Department says a 26-year-old inmate has been listed as escaped from the work release facility in Sioux City.
The department says Jacob Petty didn’t return Tuesday from an outpatient treatment program.
In October 2008 Petty began serving a 10-year sentence for robbery in Woodbury County. He was transferred to work release on Oct. 8 last year.
Carson Is The Latest Republican Presidential Candidate To Speak At Dordt College
(Sioux Center) — Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson is scheduled to speak at Dordt College Campus Center on Saturday afternoon, two days before the Iowa Caucuses. Carson will speak at 3:00 p.m. Dr. Carson represents the fifth republican presidential candidate within the last month to utilize Dordt College as the host site for a political rally. Carson follows Cruz, Rubio, Trump and Bush who is scheduled to be at Dordt College on Friday evening. Steve Kelly, a junior business administration and finance major from Hartland, Wisconsin, who also serves as the president of the Student Symposium and launched a College Republicans club on campus says, “when a candidate visits just days before the caucuses, it reflects the importance of this area of the state.
University Of Iowa Settles Gender Discrimination Lawsuit
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The University of Iowa has settled a gender discrimination lawsuit filed by a male track coach who alleged he was passed over for a job because administrators wanted a woman.
Mike Scott applied for assistant track coach when the position became open in 2012. An internal email from June 2013 surfaced that indicated head coach Layne Anderson rewrote the position’s job description to attract more female candidates after earlier searches failed.
The settlement agreement pays Scott’s attorneys nearly $81,000 and Scott $20,000 for past wages and $97,222 to settle all claims.
Scott’s attorneys say his goal was to expose sex discrimination in college athletics.
The university didn’t immediately respond but the agreement says there’s no admission of discrimination.
Scott is now an assistant coach at Missouri State University.
Man Arrested After Throwing Tomatoes At Donald Trump
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – A man has been arrested on charges that he threw tomatoes at Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a campaign stop at the University of Iowa.
Hayley Bruce, a University of Iowa spokeswoman, says 28-year-old Andrew Joseph Alemao was charged Tuesday with disorderly conduct after officers say they saw him throwing two tomatoes toward Trump during a speech. It wasn’t clear whether the tomatoes hit anyone.
Secret Service and University of Iowa police officers arrested Alemao, and he was booked into the Johnson County Jail.
Court records don’t indicate whether Alemao has an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
Johnson County Jail officials say Alemao was released Wednesday morning without bond.
Pipeline Lawsuit
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A state appeals court says a northeast Iowa farmer may pursue a breach of contract lawsuit against a natural gas pipeline company and seek damages for decreased crop productivity on the ground above the pipeline.
Roger Tiemessen farms land rented from his parents near New Hampton. He seeks compensation for poor crops in areas above Alliance Pipeline’s high pressure natural gas line.
He filed the lawsuit in 2013 but a judge dismissed it in 2014 saying he had no cause of action against Alliance and instead he should negotiate lower rental rates from his parents.
The Iowa Court of Appeals said Wednesday Tiemessen presented enough questions about crop damage in the area of the pipes to present to a jury.
The pipeline’s attorneys didn’t immediately respond to a message.
