February 9, 2012

You are here: Home / 2009 / October / Archives for 20th

Seven arrested in Cedar Rapids drug bust

October 20, 2009 By

Cedar Rapids police arrested seven people in a meth lab bust this morning.

Sergeant Cristy Hamblin of the Cedar Rapids Police Department says the active meth lab was located in a home on the city’s southeast side. Drug enforcement agents and officers in SWAT gear served the search warrant just after 7 a.m.

“Obviously, this was an early morning or all through the night kind of operation,” Hamblin said. “This was a good size arrest and (officers) stopped them right in the middle of making meth.”

The Cedar Rapids Fire Department’s hazardous materials team assisted at the scene with the dangerous chemicals. Hamblin says there was no danger to anyone in the neighborhood, but there were several children waiting for a school bus just a couple blocks away.

“This residence is just a few blocks from a middle school and just a few blocks from a hospital as well,” Hamblin said. “So, that was the fortunate thing…no one was at danger. Really, the only people that were truly at danger were the manufacturers themselves.”

Six Cedar Rapids residents are facing drug charges after the bust. They are identified as 38-year-old John Beltz, 49-year-old Tracy Stephens, 32-year-old Danial Sill, 39-year-old Joseph Boots, 37-year-old Roy Shelton 41-year-old Michael Hoover. Another person who lives at the home, 61-year-old Mabel Franks, was arrested for having a disorderly house.

Hamblin says the individuals could face additional charges because of the home’s close proximity to the school.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, Education

Over 3,900 Iowa Guard soldiers notified of possible deployment

October 20, 2009 By

Brig. Gen. Tim OrrIowa National Guard leaders have notified over 3,900 Guard soldiers across the state that they may be sent to Afghanistan next fall.  It would be the largest deployment of Iowa Guard troops since World War II.

Brigadier General Tim Orr says 3,400 solders from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 34th Infantry Division have been notified, plus 500 soldiers from other Iowa National Guard units have been put on notice they may be called in to support the mission.

“I want to emphasize that this only an alert for a possible future deployment.  Plans do and have changed,” Orr said during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.  “We’ve had units alerted and de-alerted for missions since 2001.”

The soldiers who’ve been notified have been advised to stay in school, if they’re in college, and those who are working in the private sector have been told to keep working, as the Guard units haven’t been told where or when training will be held, prior to their deployment overseas.  Colonel Thomas Staton, brigade commander of these “Red Bull” soldiers who’ve been notified of this potential deployment, was on a similar mission in Afghanistan in 2007 and 2008.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Military, Politics & Government Tagged With:

Agencies submit cuts; governor rides rails

October 20, 2009 By

As state agency directors submit their layoff plans to the governor’s office today, Governor Chet Culver is riding a train to promote wind energy.

Culver boarded the “Iowa Unlimited” train in Nevada this afternoon, with stops scheduled in Iowa Falls, Mason City and finally in Manly where he will tour the Iowa Northern Railway Company’s distribution center for wind turbine components that are shipped by rail. This is Culver’s fourth trip on an Iowa train route this year to promote state and federal investment in rail lines.

“The other neat thing we’re doing is we’ll be able to invest in the depots and modernize them,” Culver says.  “…Many of them have been on the decline and they don’t have all the services that people need, which can impact whether they ride (the train) or not.”

For example, Osceola’s Depot is undergoing a nearly $600,000 update.  ”And they’re bringing that historic place, you know, back to life,” Culver says.  The single-story brick depot in Osceola was built in 1907 and renovation of the exterior began this summer.

During an interview with Radio Iowa that was conducted on Culver’s last train trip through southern Iowa in September, Culver said it was important to upgrade the rails, too, so trains can run faster. Switching equipment is being installed along the rail line that enters southwestern Iowa after the stop in Omaha and exits southeastern Iowa at the Burlington stop.

“Because you do have the freight and the Amtrak trains that have to work together: 40 freight trains and two Amtraks daily,” Culver said, “so that’s exactly what we’re going to be doing on this track is putting in some switches — I think four of them are planned — so that…Amtrak can pass the slower freights.” 

Governor Culver ordered an across-the-board cut in executive branch agencies on October 8.  Today, October 20, state agency directors are submitting their plans for enacting a 10 percent cut in spending.  Aides to the governor say a detailed list of those plans will be released to the public midday tomorrow.

Filed Under: Business, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Study: Farmers at risk of big debt from medical bills

October 20, 2009 By

A survey finds many Midwestern farmers are at risk of falling into deep debt over medical expenses.

Jon Bailey, director of research and analysis at the Center for Rural Affairs, says many farmers are self-insured with high premiums, which means their out-of-pocket costs are huge. “So it doesn’t take something major or catastrophic to incur a good chunk of debt to you and your family,” he says.

Bailey says the average farmer in the region spends about 12-thousand dollars a year for health insurance coverage. “They don’t have employer-provided insurance,” he says. “They are self-employed. They don’t have a spouse that has employer-provided insurance.” [Read more...]

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, Health & Medicine

Grassley questions military over dismissal of soldiers with PTSD

October 20, 2009 By

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley is calling on the nation’s military leaders to document how they’re working to solve the problem of combat soldiers being unfairly discharged due to undiagnosed cases of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Grassley says some soldiers may’ve been kicked out, then forced to repay bonuses they got for re-enlisting, even though it was the wartime experiences that were the root cause of their mental health issues. Grassley says a recent study found flaws in the U.S. military’s procedures when troops return home from battle zones.

“The Pentagon failed to meet key personality disorder separation requirements,” Grassley says. “This means some members of the military may’ve been discharged for pre-existing personality disorders when it’s possible the disorders could have been due to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

Grassley says his letter asks President Obama to “renew his commitment to veterans” who may have been discharged unfairly. “With the tremendous increase in diagnoses of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, it’s pretty clear that an in-depth medical analysis is needed to ensure our returning service members get the help they need,” Grassley says.

Three other U.S. senators signed the letter. The Pentagon has done some updating of its discharge procedures since the critical report was released, but Grassley says they want more than just “verbal assurances” from military leaders that positive changes have taken place.

“Our letter asks for an update on the number of military members who were deployed in combat zones and then discharged with personality disorders as well as the number who have appealed the discharge decision,” Grassley says.

Congress passed a bill three years ago, charging the Veterans Administration with setting up a program to screen and monitor for suicide risks in returning soldiers. The Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act was named for a 22-year old Army Reservist who killed himself at his parent’s home in Grundy Center, Iowa, a few days before Christmas in 2005. Omvig had just returned from 11 months of combat duty in Iraq.  Congressman Leonard Boswell, a Democrat from Des Moines who is a Vietnam era veteran, was a key sponsor of the Omvig Act.

Filed Under: Military Tagged With: , , ,

Casino idea floated again in Cedar Rapids

October 20, 2009 By

Some officials in Linn County are reviving the idea of building a casino in Cedar Rapids, but the Administrator of the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission says the idea is a long shot. There are already four casinos within 90 miles of Cedar Rapids and Jack Ketterer says that will likely impact whether Cedar Rapids gets one.

“Commission members indicated that would be one of the major things that they would look at in determining whether they wanted to grant additional licenses…they do not want casinos going out of business on their watch,” Ketterer said. 

Officials in Wapello, Webster, Franklin, Lyon and Tama counties have already expressed interest in building a casino. Ketterer says their future could decide whether Cedar Rapids even has a chance.

“What the commission decides during this next six months, with respect to these applications that will be coming in, would be an indication of the likelihood of additional licenses being granted,” Ketterer said.

It’s uncertain whether government leaders in Linn County will continue pursuing the idea. An outside consulting firm has already determined a casino in Cedar Rapids would not generate sufficient revenue.

There are several obstacles to building a casino in Cedar Rapids. First, Linn County voters must approve it and in 2003, voters rejected the idea. The earliest they could go to the polls again to vote on the measure is 2011.

Filed Under: Business, Politics & Government, Religion Tagged With: , , , ,

Charges dropped against baby’s mother

October 20, 2009 By

Charges are being dropped against a Hamilton County mother who was arrested in the death of her month-old son. 

Last December, Tanner Doran died of blunt force trauma to the head at a residence in Jewell.  Angela Meeker was charged with child endangerment causing death, but prosecutors asked a judge to dismiss the charges because of a lack of evidence.

The boy’s father, Michael Meeker, is facing a charge of first-degree murder in the case. No trial date has been set.

(Story contributed by Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City)

Filed Under: Crime & Courts
« Older Posts