The Iowa State Medical Examiner has completed an autopsy on a Waterloo murder victim. Results of the autopsy confirm Taveros Galloway died of a single gunshot wound to the head. Galloway’s body was found in an S-U-V on a sidewalk outside a home near downtown Waterloo late Tuesday night. Police say it appears the 29-year-old Galloway was shot while driving the vehicle on a city street less than a mile from Waterloo city hall. Authorities closed about four blocks of the street for several hours after the shooting to gather evidence. Detectives are trying to figure out why Galloway was in the neighborhood. No arrests have been in the case. The investigation is continuing.
Autopsy complete in death of Waterloo man
February 12, 2009 By
Trees can be a moneymaker for farmers, landowners
February 12, 2009 By
The economy has forced a lot of people to examine their possessions for potential value. Iowa farmers and other land owners are finding they can turn a decent profit selling trees. Aron Flickinger, a forester with the Department of Natural Resources, is encouraging those farmers to do their research.
Flickinger says a trained forester can guide landowners to ensure the future health of the forest will be sustainable, improving the overall value of the land. There are more than 138,000 and Iowans who own trees that are classified as "forest" on their property.
Sawmills and other timber buyers spend around $20-million a year purchasing trees from those landowners. Flickinger says it can be difficult to determine the value of a stand of trees.
"Really, the best way for a farmer to know the value is to get several people who are in the log buying business to give him an estimate of what they would pay for those trees," Flickinger said. The D.N.R. can help Iowans draw up a contract to sell the trees. Flickinger says land owners should avoid verbal agreements sealed with a handshake.
"Sometimes I get calls from landowners that either don’t get paid or don’t feel like they got enough money for their trees," Flickinger said. "That’s why we want farmers to seek a professional resource to get good advice, much like they would if they were selling a house or farmland."
Walnut and oak tree are generally among the most valuable trees in Iowa, but a variety of factors determine what buyers are willing to pay, including the distance to haul the logs to a sawmill, the quantity and quality of the timber and the market conditions for the wood products that will be made from the timber.
A single walnut tree, with high quality veneer, can be worth around $10,000. Flickinger says farmers and other land owners play an important role in determining the long term sustainability of Iowa’s forests. He says over 90% of Iowa’s forest resources are owned by private citizens.
See the D.N.R.’s website for more information on trees.
Program helps veterans launch businesses
February 12, 2009 By
Iowa has no major military bases, but the state is outpacing some of its neighbors in a program designed to help veterans and their families launch or expand small businesses. Joe Folsom, district director for the U.S. Small Business Administration in Iowa, says the Patriot Express program has done exceptionally well in the Iowa veterans community.
Folsom says, "It would be National Guard, Reserve, veterans, spouses of active duty, it’s really everyone that’s a member of a military family that wants to get started in a small business." Since the program made its debut in June of 2007, he says 26 Patriot Express loans have been approved in Iowa, worth more than two-and-a-half million dollars.
That’s better than the results in nearly 20 other states nationwide, including Nebraska, Kansas and South Dakota.
"When you start comparing it to the neighboring states, it’s a real plus for the members of the military community that we’ve been reaching out to and also the lenders who’ve been engaged in this project," he says.
Folsom says it’s an attractive program to veterans and their families. Folsom says, "It’s using some of our most expeditious tools, the simple, most efficient tools that we’ve got to provide financing working through our lenders." He says the two-dozen-plus businesses started in Iowa using the program range from a landscaping firm to a chiropractic clinic.
Nationwide, the program has helped secure small business loans to nearly 2,900 veterans and military spouses, passing the $250-million threshold.
Iowa native to appear on Jeopardy
February 12, 2009 By
An Iowa native will be a contestant on an upcoming episode of Jeopardy. Rachel Anderson, who’s originally from Webster City, recently took part in the taping of the long-running TV quiz show.
Anderson says she’s been watching Jeopardy since she was 11 years old, when it returned to television in 1984. She says there was an on-line test for potential contestants and she took it on a lark. Based on the results, Anderson took part in a regional audition in Chicago and then was invited to be a contestant on the actual show in Los Angeles.
She wasn’t allowed to say how she placed on the program, but describes her visit with host Alex Trebek. Anderson says, "He really doesn’t talk to the contestants too much, I’d assume because of legal reasons, but he’s very nice, very witty and has a good sense of humor." Anderson now lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she’s a English professor at Grand Valley State University.
A 1991 Webster City High School graduate, Anderson credits one of her Iowa high school activities in preparing for her national TV appearance. She did Quiz Bowl in high school and "could always remember things that I never even knew I knew," as she says remembering random facts and trivia is key to Jeopardy as you can’t really study for it. The episode featuring Anderson will be telecast on March 2nd.
For more information, visit the Jeopardy website .
Harkin critical of federal, state and local officials in Atalissa bunkhouse case
February 12, 2009 By
Iowa Senator Tom Harkin is critical of federal, state and local officials following the revelation that a group of 21 mentally retarded men were living in a run down century-old bunkhouse in Atalissa while working at the West Liberty turkey plant. Harkin, a Democrat, wrote the Americans with Disabilities Act and has long been an advocate for people with disabilities.
"This is shocking, this is absolutely shocking that in this day and age, something like this would happen. And for everyone to try and wash their hands of it," Harkin says, "the city of Atalisa is trying to wash their hands of it, you have the mayor saying he’s never been in the building and the city owns the building. This is inexcusable."
Harkin says the Texas company hiring the men and then put them up substandard housing makes the men "sort of like indentured servants." A company in Texas called "Henry’s Turkey Service" was serving as the men’s caretakers. The men were paid a small wage and were charged $1,000 a month for room and board.
"This is pretty closely akin to slavery folks, the way this operation was run, where they worked for this place in Texas and then for West Liberty Foods to say they had nothing to do with it, they didn’t pay these people," Harkin says. He says West Liberty Foods had a lot to do with it and this is "inexcusable." Harkin also questions the role of state and federal officials.
"I also wonder about state inspectors, where were they inspecting this facility? And federal inspectors? Something’s not adding up here, that this would slip through the cracks for 30 years, and noone would do something about it." Harkin says. Harkin says he doesn’t have all the information, but is getting more and more all the time and "there’s going to be repercussions on this one." Harkin believes that those who ran the facility should be punished.
Harkin says he’s almost convinced that "crimes have been committed, and these people ought to be punished to the full extent of the law for what they have done." He says they have to make it up to the men in terms of back pay and what they have coming to them. Harkin says everything needs to be aired out and those responsible need to be held accountable.
The 21 mentally retarded men were moved to a residential facility in Waterloo Tuesday. A spokesperson for the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals (DIA), says his agency is seeking a criminal charge against Henry’s Turkey Service for operating a health care facility without a license.
Additionally, the DIA’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit is working with authorities in Texas to determine if there was dependent adult abuse, specifically financial exploitation.
UNI gets closer to MVC title with win over SIU
February 12, 2009 By
After having an 11-game winning streak snapped the UNI Panthers bounced back with a convincing 81-55 win over Southern Illinois.
Jordan Eglseder scored 17 points to lead four Panthers in double figures as UNI won a school record 12th win. The 26 point margin was the largest ever by UNI over Southern Illinois.
The Panthers are now 12-2 in the Missouri Valley and 18-7 overall.
Hawkeyes turnover game to Badgers
February 12, 2009 By
The Iowa Hawkeyes lost at Wisconsin 69-52 in Big Ten action. A big reason was 14 Hawkeye turnovers that led to 29 Badger points. Iowa coach Todd Lickliter says you can’t guard Wisconsin when you turn it over like that. Wisconsin outscored the Hawks 9-0 in the final two minutes of the opening half to build a 12 point lead at the break. It was a stretch that included three Iowa turnovers and a technical foul against Matt Gatens. Lickliter says they tried to keep the Badgers from getting on runs, but they created the run for them and it was hard to recover. Iowa falls to 3-9 in the Big Ten. Lickliter says you have to get sick of losing and then realize you win by "hitting singles" and scoring possession by possession.
