UPDATED CHARGES AGAINST DUONG
The suspect charged with abducting his son from Greene County elementary school in Jefferson, Iowa on Tuesday afternoon is now charged with second degree kidnapping armed with a dangerous weapon.
34-year-old Brandon Duong was officially charged in a criminal complaint filed Wednesday in Greene County.
The school principal told police Brandon Duong showed up at the school around 12:45 where his seven-year-old son Bryson ran to Brandon and his vehicle from the playground at recess time.
The boy had been ordered out of Mr. Duong’s custody on December 21st, 2023.
Police say Brandon Duong left his cell phone behind to avoid being tracked.
AIRPORT FUNDING
Sioux County Regional Airport near Maurice was granted federal funds for airport improvements. The funds come from the US Department of Transportation’s Airport Infrastructure Grants. The airport was granted 123-thousand dollars to acquire more land for development. There were grants announced Wednesday for 20 smaller, non-hub airports in Iowa, distributing 9 million dollars among them.
PUBLIC WEIGHS IN ON THE GOVERNOR’S AEA OVERHAUL
Governor Kim Reynolds is urging legislators to advance her plan to overhaul the state’s Area Education Agencies.
Reynolds says test scores show students with disabilities aren’t being served well by the A-E-As. The governor spoke with reporters just before hour-long hearings Wednesday in the Iowa House and Senate on her bill. Key House Republicans say there’s still a need for more discussions before the bill is ready for a committee vote. The bill did clear a SENATE subcommittee, but Republican Senator Ken Rozenboom of Oskaloosa says legislators need to find answers to questions that have been raised.
Okoboji Superintendent Todd Abrahamson says he supports giving school districts the federal, state and property tax money that’s currently being forwarded to the A-E-As, so his district can hire its own staff.
Dan Daughton, a former principal and superintendent, is a lobbyist for the School Administrators of Iowa and Rural School Advocates of Iowa — groups that oppose the bill.
Suzanne Costello of Kellogg is the parent of a child with learning disabilities including dyslexia who she says has been helped by the local A-E-A. She doubts small schools will be able to hire professional staff.
Representatives of Iowans for Tax Relief, Americans for Prosperity and the Iowa Manufactured Housing Association urged legislators to ratify the governor’s changes, which would reduce property taxes by 33 million dollars.
MILD FEBRUARY AHEAD MEANS CATCH-UP TIME FOR ROAD REPAIR CREWS
While many Iowans are enjoying temperatures well above normal in the 40s and 50s, it was just two weeks ago that high temps were some 60 to 70-degrees colder — in the teens below zero. January brought record or near-record snowfall to parts of the state, but Hamilton County Engineer Ryan Weidemann (WY-duh-man) says they’re not hearing many reports of a problem that’s typically plaguing motorists about now. With the mild winter, Weidemann says potholes are less frequent and less severe. The rollercoaster January followed a very mild December, during which Weidemann says crews were able to continue doing fall-type tasks, like cleaning up brush and ditches.
TWO WESTERN IOWA RIVERS HOST STATE’S PADDLEFISH SEASON, STARTING TODAY
The paddlefish snagging season on the Missouri and Big Sioux rivers opened Thursday. The D-N-R’s western Iowa fisheries supervisor, Chris Larson, says river conditions should be good.
Larson says water levels had been down a little because of the drought, but the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has released more water and snowmelt will add to the levels. There are size limits to protect the population.
Larson says they sold about 300 of the 950 available tags, and around 20 percent of those with tags actually catch a paddlefish. He says there are other fish you can catch and keep.
The paddlefish season runs through April 30th. Larson says they are considering a change in the rules that would allow them to sell the unclaimed tags while the season is still underway.