Head-on Collision Occurs Wednesday Morning At 11th Street And Central Avenue
(Le Mars) — Officials responded to the scene of a head-on accident that happened at 11th Street and Central Avenue south. The accident occurred at about 8:18 a.m. this morning (Wednesday) and involved two pickup trucks that had collided head-on. The Le Mars Ambulance, Le Mars Fire and Rescue Department, and the Le Mars Police all responded to the accident scene. According to Le Mars Police officials the injuries were considered to be minor.
Governor Reynolds Delivers “Condition Of State” Address
(Des Moines) — Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds delivered her “Condition of the State” address last evening before the joint session of the Iowa state legislature. The governor spoke for nearly 45 minutes and lawmakers applauded 18 times during her address. She began by recalling the many challenges Iowa has endured during 2020, including the pandemic, derecho
storm, drought, and civil unrest. Reynolds says Iowa has had no shortage of character, but she says the condition of the state has never been stronger.
Reynolds credited conservative budgeting for leaving the state in a healthy financial position, despite all the many challenges.
The first request by the governor was to ask the legislature to allocate $450 million dollars over the next few years to expand broadband internet to reach every community of Iowa and its rural regions.
Reynolds, then rolled out her plan to expand broadband internet throughout the state.
The Iowa governor touched on the need to expand child care services and asked the legislature to commit $3 million towards assisting communities with developing childcare facilities. She also wants to use $25 million dollars in development block grants to further promote childcare start-ups. She also advocated the need for additional affordable housing and challenged the
legislature to fund additional programs that have helped communities construct housing through tax savings incentives. Governor Reynolds spent a considerable amount of her speech focusing on education issues. The governor commended both the Hinton Community School and West Sioux Schools for being
innovating under difficult circumstances. She asked the legislature to immediately pass a bill that would allow parents the choice if they want their children to attend “in-person” classes.
In addition, Reynolds also advocated the need for “school choice.”
Reynolds was quick to point out that Iowa public schools are also important to the educational development of our students.
The governor also focused attention on law enforcement and the nation’s civil unrest during her address.
She says our law enforcement officers need our respect and support.
Reynolds says she will introduce a bill that will protect law enforcement officers and continue the march against racial injustice.
The governor concluded her address by discussing the state’s mental health program, and briefly talking about the rate of vaccinations against the COVID-19 virus. Reynolds informed the state legislature that by January 25th, all of the state’s long-term care nursing residents and staff will have received their vaccination shots.
Jeneary And Carlin Comment On Governor’s Speech
(Des Moines) — Republican State Representative Dr. Tom Jeneary of Le Mars and Republican State Senator Jim Carlin of Sioux City both say they liked the comments Governor Reynolds shared during her Condition of the State address.
Carlin says he appreciated the governor’s comments about getting back to “in-person” classes for our state’s schools.
The governor is asking the state legislature to approve expanding high-speed broadband internet through out all parts of the state. Carlin says that is essential, and he compares it to when the state hooked up electricity and phone service across the state many decades ago.
Jeneary says he likes what he heard from Governor Reynolds, but he wonders if the state can afford to fund all of her requests.
Both lawmakers say they anticipate strong debate in both chambers with the educational issues before the state legislature.
Iowa GOP Leaders Want Iowa Students Back in School
(Des Moines, IA) — Key Republicans in the Iowa legislature say ensuring schools offer students 100-percent in-person classes is the top priority of the new legislative session. Senate Republican Leader Jack Whitver of Ankeny says the state can’t afford to let a generation of kids fall behind academically. House Speaker Pat Grassley of New Hartford says several Iowa school districts posted proficiency tests from students last semester that
were unacceptable. Districts moved to hybrid and distance learning in the fall to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Senate Democratic Leader Zach Wahls says speeding up delivery of vaccines will ensure kids and educators can go back to school safely.
1,199 New COVID Cases in Iowa, 83 Additional Deaths
(Des Moines, IA) — The Iowa Department of Public Health is reporting one-thousand-199 new positive COVID tests, increasing the state’s total to 298-thousand-65 cases. Eighty-three more Iowans have died of coronavirus complications which brings the death toll to four-thousand-222. State health
officials say 552 people are hospitalized with COVID in Iowa. Ninety of those patients are in intensive care and 30 are on ventilators. There are virus outbreaks in 90 long-term care facilities. Fifty-one counties have a 14-day average positivity of rate of at least 15 percent.
Authorities ID Teens Killed in Police Chase and Crash in Clive
(Clive, IA) — Authorities are identifying the three teens killed in high-speed chase early Monday in central Iowa. Clive police say said 16-year-old Emmanuel Martin Nyariel, 14-year-old Majok Martin Nyariel and 14-year-old Zacharia Warsame died in the crash. Thirteen-year-old Mohamed Elzubeir and 15-year-old Hamid Lula remain hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.
All five victims are students in the Des Moines Community School District.
Police Chief Michael Venema said they don’t know who was driving the stolen Chevy Malibu. Officers found two handguns at the scene.
Mother Headed To Prison For Shooting Her Son
(Sioux City, IA) — An Iowa mother who has admitted shooting her son is headed to prison for 10 years. Fifty-seven-year-old Georgia Grau entered a guilty plea to charges of willful injury and reckless use of a firearm as part of a plea agreement. Prosecutors dropped a charge of attempted murder.
Thomas Grau was shot last June in a home in Morningside at Sioux City. He survived the shooting incident.
Federal Grand Jury Indicts Des Moines Man For Actions During Capitol Riots
(Des Moines, IA) — A grand jury has indicted a Des Moines man on six federal charges for breaking into the U-S Capitol. Forty-one-year-old Doug Jensen of Des Moines made his first appearance in federal court Tuesday, via a video feed from the Polk County jail. Photos and videos of Jensen during the riot were widely circulated – showing him confronting police officers.
One of the videos shows a man who appears to be Jensen leading a crowd in chasing a lone black officer up flights of stairs, just outside the Senate chambers. Court documents show Jensen turned himself in to police and admitted to chasing the officer, saying he wore the QAnon t-shirt shirt because he wanted Q to “get the credit”.
Buchanan County Tip Leads to Deer Poaching Charges
(Hopkinton, IA) – – Seven people from Waterloo are charged in a deer poaching investigation in Buchanan County. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says a tip about someone trying to kill a deer at night in Brayton Memorial Forest Wildlife Area led to the charges. The D-N-R says 32-year-old
Shar Reh shot a deer with a Magnum rifle on Halloween night while friends used a flashlight so he could see the animal. Conservation officers say six people helped Reh butcher and bag the deer. Reh is charged with unlawful taking of a white-tailed deer with a prohibited rifle and hunting by artificial light. Reh’s co-defendants are charged with joint criminal conduct and ordered to each pay 474-dollar fines. Each person involved had
their hunting fishing and trapping licenses suspended for one year.
River Communities Worried About Water Levels In “Big Muddy”
(Council Bluffs, IA) — Stories in recent years had focused on catastrophic flooding along the Missouri River. The story is different this year. Many Iowa communities are worried that current low water levels could affect their drinking water source. The U-S Army Corps of Engineers’ Northwest Division says full flood control capacity of the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir
System is available for the upcoming runoff season. The forecast for the upper Missouri Basin above Sioux City is 90-percent of the average.
