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Audit finds improper use of funds in Macedonia

November 21, 2008 By

A state audit has found a small town clerk wrote over $37,000 worth of improper checks. The western Iowa town of Macedonia has about 325 residents.

In late August, a bank employee told a member of the Macedonia City Council that City Clerk Barbara Andersen had received an unusually large number of checks from the city’s account. She was placed on administrative leave on September 4th and she resigned two days later.

The audit covers a period of just over two years and shows Andersen collected thousands of dollars worth of unauthorized pay. She also made a variety of purchases for things like groceries and dog food that were not for the city, but for herself. She charged the city for memberships to Sam’s Club, too.

The state audit has been forwarded to the Division of Criminal Investigation, the attorney general and the Pottawattamie County Attorney.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts

Pheasant hunting off to slow start in some areas

November 21, 2008 By

Pheasant hunters, at least in some areas of the state, aren’t having much luck this year. Birds are finding plenty of cover thanks to the late harvest. A wildlife biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources expects hunters will have more chances to pull the trigger in the coming weeks.

Todd Bogenschutz says he went pheasant hunting on the season’s opening day, but didn’t see one bird across a 10 acre field full of standing corn. Last week, however, he hunted the same piece of land in south-central Iowa and flushed 26 hens and six roosters.

"Three-quarters of the corn around it was gone, so I think that standing corn impacted us on opening day for sure," Bogenschutz said. The Iowa corn harvest is nearing completion in the northern third of Iowa, but for the rest of the state, anywhere from 30 to 50 percent of the corn is still standing in the field. Across much of eastern Iowa, progress on the corn harvest might not boost the pheasant harvest.

The population was hit hard by last year’s harsh winter and record flooding in the spring. "I think over in eastern Iowa, we can’t expect a lot even when the corn is out," Bogenshutz said. "We’re going to need a year or two for the birds to bounce back there." Bogenschutz says hunters may want to avoid hunting near rivers that flooded last summer and concentrate more on upland habitat, like wetlands, fencerows, terraces or any land in the Conservation Reserve Program.  

Filed Under: Recreation & Entertainment Tagged With: ,

Cerro Gordo County having trouble with 9-1-1 system

November 21, 2008 By

The Cerro Gordo County Sheriff says he’s "frustrated" with recent problems with the county’s 9-1-1 system. Sheriff Kevin Pals says the computerized system that was installed earlier this year has been giving dispatchers problems, with one glitch last week resulting in calls not being answered.

Sheriff Pals says about 4:00 AM on November 13th, a resident called 9-1-1 several times to report a burglary of trucks at an area business and his calls went unanswered. Pals says they believe the system was not working early in the morning on November 13th because, for some reason, its settings went back to default mode.

He says in default mode, when one dispatcher is on the phone, the other dispatcher phone was muted, which should not be happening in a dispatch center this size. Pals says they’ve been having other problems with the system and they have been keeping a running log of those issues since summer.

They’ve reported problems with the system to Qwest 43 times and the company hasn’t always responded in a timely manner, Pals says, especially when it comes to an emergency call system. He says those issues include the dispatcher being unable to hear a caller and background noise in the phone line. Pals says it’s up to the Cerro Gordo County E-9-1-1 Board to decide if they should replace the system.

He says if you can’t get through when dialing 9-1-1, call your law enforcement agency via its non-emergency phone numbers or use a cell phone to call 9-1-1. The system cost about $400,000.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Spencer man dies in fire

November 21, 2008 By

A Spencer man was killed in an apartment fire shortly after midnight early this morning. Fire Chief Doug Duncan says heavy smoke and fire greeted firefighters upon their arrival at 12:11 a.m. from the front of the building.

After making their way through severe heat and fire 59-year-old Wayne Weier Sr. was found dead in the kitchen. An autopsy has been ordered to determine the cause of death. The cause of the fire, which originated in the northeast living room area of the house on the main floor, has been ruled accidental as an electric space heater ignited a sofa in the living room.

No intentional sources were determined. The home, which sustained $25,000 in damage due to severe heat and smoke damage throughout, cannot be occupied at this time. No other injuries were reported.

 

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters

DHS director hopes program eliminates racial disparity

November 21, 2008 By

The new director of the Iowa Department of Human Services is hoping to make a difference with a campaign called "Help Make No Difference." Gene Gessow says the play on words refers to his goal of eliminating racial disparities in the state’s child welfare system. Gessow says he’s interested in possibly implementing a program in place in Polk County to other areas of the state.

That program is entitled "Undoing Racism." It’s a two-and-a-half day course, taken by employees in the Polk County D.H.S. office, that examines personal attitudes about race and cultural biases. "I understand that it is actually a very tough course to take for the people who take it," Gessow said. A similar course is available to D.H.S. employees in Woodbury County. Gessow says the "Help Make No Difference" campaign will involve a number of strategies, but is primarily designed to build trust between the D.H.S. and the people the agency serves.

"One of the things we’re trying to do is work with families, rather than instruct or direct families," Gessow said. "That involves a lot more listening on our part and a lot more attention to what is being said to us." In Iowa, the percentage of African American children involved in D.H.S. out-of-home placements is about four times higher than their share of the state’s general population.

Gessow says he hopes to eliminate racial disparities in Iowa’s child welfare system by 2018. "I think if we did that, we would be doing very well," Gessow said. The new campaign, which includes a website and brochures, encourages social workers, reporters of child abuse and the general public to examine their cultural and racial biases. The training in Polk County is open to juvenile judges and mandatory abuse reporters – such as school teachers and health officials. Gessow says an effort is also underway by the D.H.S. to recruit more African American foster homes.

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www.helpmakenodifference.com

Filed Under: Politics & Government

Iowa basketball goes to 3-0

November 21, 2008 By

The Iowa Hawkeyes rolled to a victory in their first road test of the season. Freshman Anthony Tucker poured in 21 points, including 7-of-11 from three point range as the Hawks pulled away in the second half in a 70-48 win over the Citadel.

Iowa coach Todd Lickliter says they showed a lot of poise and executed. Lickliter says the Citadel is well coached and makes you make jump shots. Freshman Anthony Tucker led a three point barrage that saw the Hawks hit 52 percent from behind the arc. Lickliter says Tucker had great looks at the basket, but that was due to good passing and screening by his teammates.

Iowa improves to 3-0 and returns home to play Oakland of Michigan on Sunday afternoon.

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ,

Iowa turkeys prepare for trip to Washington, D.C.

November 21, 2008 By

Colin and Conner Hill with turkeys that'll go to the White House. A Hamilton County family is preparing to travel to Washington, D.C. to accompany the turkey they’ve raised that’ll be pardoned by President George Bush.

Paul Hill’s Ellsworth turkey operation was chosen for the honor by virtue of his role as Chairman of the National Turkey Federation.

Hill says they have two tom turkeys ready to make the trip. Hill says they will be about 44 to 45 pounds when they make it to the White House. He says they selected the two finalists from some 13 turkeys that were picked when they were nine weeks old. The turkeys will be about 20 weeks old by the time they reach Washington.

These turkeys have had weeks of training to be ready for their national debut. Hill says they play music for the turkeys and work with them every day so the turkeys are trained and used to having people come up and pet them on a table. "so they have to be very, very tame, and a turkey by nature is not a very tame animal," Hill says. Hill says this is a family operation and 24 members of the group will makes the trip.

Iowa turkey waiting for trip to Washington, D.C. "It’s very exciting, very exciting for everybody, it’s kind of a once-in-a-lifetime experience," Hill says. He says the most exciting thing for him is that his grandsons helped his son raise the turkeys that’ll go to the White House.

The turkeys will take up residence in the Willard Hotel while in Washington in an exclusive suite. Hill’s farm raises about 700,000 turkeys each year — with most of them end up as sandwich meat for the Subway chain. But this turkey won’t end up on a bun — or a Thanksgiving table.

"The president will pardon him, and then after that, he’ll probably pardon a bunch of other turkeys," Hill says. After the pardon, the turkey will be taken to the Dulles Airport in Washington and flown on a plane dubbed "Turkey One" for a trip to California and Disneyland. The turkeys, and the Hills, will be in the Disneyland Thanksgiving Day parade. Hill says visitors to the amusement park will get a chance to visit the Iowa natives in the Pioneer Village.

Hill says Disney will put the turkeys on a restricted diet to pull their weight down, and they can be expected to live three or four years. Hill says they’ve had all kinds of media visit their farm to see the turkeys, including C.B.S. TV which will feature them on their Sunday morning program on November 30th.

This is the sixth time an Iowan, serving as chairman of the National Turkey Federation, has presented the National Thanksgiving Turkey at the White House. The turkeys will leave for Washington, D.C. Monday via a van for the ceremony on Wednesday.  

Filed Under: Human Interest
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