The junior shortstop batted .421 and in six games slammed a pair of home runs, drove in 10 runs, scored ten and also stole nine bases. Bowers did much of his damage in a victory over Conrad, BCL-UW when he slugged two home runs, drove in eight runs and scored four times. He also had a pair of hits and six stolen bases in a win over Mount Pleasant.
Class 1A: Ethan Westphal, Martensdale-St. Marys
June 29, 2010 By
The junior was 2-0 on the mound and in 14 innings or work gave up no earned runs, eight hits and struck out 22 batters. He also batted .476 and in six games drove in seven runs, had six stolen bases and scored five runs. Westphal tossed a complete game three hitter and struck out 10 in a win over Pleasantville. He also went the distance with a five hitter and 12 strikeouts in a victory over Iowa Christian Academy. He also homered and drove in three runs.
Grassley not ready to make any decisions on Supreme Court nominee
June 29, 2010 By
Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says he’s not yet ready to say how he’ll vote on the nomination of Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court. Grassley, a Republican, is on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is going to be quizzing Kagan all week.
Grassley says, “She knows what her major problem is and that’s to convince the Senate that she’s going to be what we call dispassionate, have judicial temperament, look at the law and look at the Constitution and make a decision based upon the words of the Constitution and leave her own personal views out of it.”
Grassley says in her writings, Kagan has taken very passionate stands on several liberal points of view, which he says would disqualify her for a seat on the nation’s high court if she can’t reign in her feelings.
“She tried to calm fears about that,” Grassley says. “I don’t know how she’s succeeding because I haven’t talked to my colleagues, but particularly from a lot of the members of the committee, she heard from us in our opening statements that we were very concerned about her ability to be dispassionate once she gets on the court.”
Grassley has served on the Senate Judiciary Committee since 1981 and confirmed 11 straight Supreme Court nominees — until voting against Sonia Sotomayor last year.
Audit questions spending of former Collins library employee
June 29, 2010 By
A state audit has identified over $9,000 worth of questionable transactions at a small central Iowa library. Collins is a small town in the southeast corner of Story County.
Darlene Nelson, the president of the Collins Library Board, resigned last July after questions were raised about certain transactions at the library. The audit found Nelson had been over-paid by about $5,000 for her job as a library assistant. State Auditor Dave Vaudt says she reported “excessive hours” she didn’t actually work over a two-year period.
In addition, Nelson had been reimbursed for nearly $1,800 worth of books and movies which “could not be located in the library.” The audit found another $2,000 worth of movie rental fees, candy sales, library donations and even grants to the library from the state had not been deposited in the library’s account.
The audit concluded Nelson had been paid about $550 for other purchases and mileage claims that were “not supported by proper documentation.” In one instance, Nelson had submitted receipts for books that had been donated to the library by its former director.
Nelson told the City Clerk in Collins she bought the books, and asked for reimbursement. The audit has been referred to state and local authorities.
Motorcyclist from Missouri stopped for speeding over 150 MPH
June 29, 2010 By
A motorcyclist is jailed after a chase on Interstate 35 that reached speeds over 150 miles an hour through Cerro Gordo and Franklin counties. The Iowa State Patrol says shortly after 10 o’clock Monday night, a trooper clocked 35-year-old Terry Lee of Liberty, Missouri, going 89 miles an hour in a 70 miles an hour zone near the State Highway 3 interchange.
As Lee continued to speed north on the interstate, another trooper clocked Lee’s motorcycle on radar going 152 miles per hour. The patrol says Lee got off the interstate at the County Road B-43 exit at mile marker 188 and headed east toward Burchinal. Lee then lost control of the motorcycle on a gravel shoulder and wiped out, with a trooper able to bump the bike with his vehicle, preventing Lee from getting up and taking off.
Lee was taken to the Cerro Gordo County Jail and booked on two different speeding violations and for eluding law enforcement. Despite wiping out, Lee was not injured.
By Bob Fisher, KRIB, Mason City
Cedar Rapids schools break ground for new services center
June 29, 2010 By
The Cedar Rapids school district broke ground Monday on a multi-million dollar district services center to replace the site that was flooded in 2008. Superintendent Dave Benson says district employees have been located throughout the city in temporary locations and the new building will bring them back together.
“Not having good contact with people is difficult so I see improved communication, improved employee morale, and improved services to the students and to the community,” Benson says. The center will cost as much as 40-million dollars — depending on the bid process — and will include all administration, transportation, and warehouse and purchasing workers.
“Being under the same roof, being able to go from maintenance and operations to transportation to warehouse, to administrative center, and to have a professional learning center, these are all improvements and will help,” Benson says. A portion of the cost of the new center will come from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The new center is expected to open in 2012.
Charles City man injured in construction accident
June 29, 2010 By
The assistant fire chief of Charles City is in stable condition at a hospital in Rochester, Minnesota, after a trench collapse. The Charles City Fire Department was called shortly after 4:15 Monday afternoon, where they found David Boehmer was trapped up to his armpits in soil.
Boehmer was working on building a new home on the property that he owns. He was conscious and breathing the whole time and rescue personnel freed him within 25 minutes of arriving at the scene.
Boehmer was taken to Floyd County Medical Center then transferred to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa in Mason City. He was then taken to St. Mary’s Hospital in Rochester late last night, where he was listed in stable condition.
By Bob Fisher, KRIB, Mason City
