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Prison guard recovering after attack

July 12, 2010 By

A prison guard is recovering from injuries after being attacked by an inmate at the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison. Iowa Department of Corrections spokesperson Fred Scaletta says the incident happened last Thursday as guards were taking inmates from the dining area back to their prison cells.

Inmate Dennis Manchester is accused of attacking a female correctional officer who’s name is not being released. The guard suffered facial abrasions. She was taken to a hospital for treatment and later released. Manchester was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2004 for a second-degree robbery conviction in Pottawattamie County.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts

Dive team recovers man’s body from Hardin County pond

July 12, 2010 By

A fisherman’s death in north-central Iowa is under investigation. Hardin County authorities said a 55-year-old man drowned in a farm pond near Eldora. The Hardin County Sheriff’s Office identified the name of the victim as William Dale Eldridge. Authorities said Eldridge was fishing in a pond at around 11:30 Saturday morning when the boat tipped over.

A Story County dive team recovered Eldridge’s body. The Hardin County Law Enforcement Center said an autopsy will be conducted in Mason City.

By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Another woman dies after being hit by train in Ames

July 12, 2010 By

Investigations are underway in Ames into the deaths of two women who’ve been hit by trains. Witnesses say a woman was on foot Saturday night and tried to hurry across the tracks, but was hit by the Union Pacific train and killed. She’s identified as 50-year-old Fannie Williams, of Ames. Police say the signals and alarms at the crossing were working properly.

In a separate case, a toxicology report is being released on an Iowa State University student who was hit and killed by a train in Ames in late April. The report says 19-year-old Raven Gileau was drunk. Her blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit. Gileau was from Woodbridge, Virginia. The case is being sent to the Story County Attorney for possible criminal charges.

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Gingrich blasts Obama as “out of touch” with economy (audio)

July 12, 2010 By
Newt Gingrich speaks at a fundraiser for Republican Congressional candidate Brad Zaun.

Newt Gingrich speaks at a fundraiser for Republican Congressional candidate Brad Zaun.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich says the number one challenge in America is creating jobs and he advocates a series of tax cuts as a way to get the economy growing again.  

Gingrich is in Iowa, leading a day-long workshop for Iowa Republican candidates. But Gingrich started his day with a half-hour-long appearance at a fundraiser in Urbandale for Republican congressional candidate Brad Zaun. Gingrich blasted the Obama Administration for racking up federal debt and he said the president is “totally out of touch” on the economy.   

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

Canadian company extends deadline in attempted take over of Casey’s

July 12, 2010 By

The Canadian company that’s trying an unfriendly take over the Casey’s Convenience store chain has extended its offer to shareholders.  Alimentation Couche-Tard’s had set last Friday as the deadline for Casey’s shareholders to take up its offer of $36 a share for the stock in the Ankeny-based chain.

The company says just over 19% of the stock has been offered by shareholders to the company and they are extending the offer to August 6th. Casey’s board has been trying to fight off the takeover and issued a statement today that said, “The low number of shares tendered reflects what Casey’s has heard from many shareholders — that this hostile, highly conditional offer is inadequate. The response of our shareholders to Couche-Tard’s tender offer speaks for itself.”

The Casey’s board urges stockholders to go to the S-E-C website  to read the statement the board filed in response to the takeover attempt. Casey’s officials also filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court alleging that Couche-Tard has violated federal securities laws in connection with its takeover attempt by making its offer public to buy Casey’s shares without disclosing that it already owned two million shares of Casey’s stock.

They say Couche-Tard then took advantage of the market reaction to make millions of dollars by selling almost all of the shares the company owned.

Filed Under: Business

Stricker wins second straight John Deere Classic

July 12, 2010 By

Steve Stricker made in two in a row at the John Deere Classic. Despite falling of his record pace of the first three rounds Stricker finished with a final round of one under par 70 to win the PGA Tour event for the second straight year. Stricker says he had a feeling it wasn’t going to be easy. It was the second time he has come out in a tournament with a big lead, and says you like to be in that position, but it is a difficult one to be in because you have everything to lose.

Stricker finished the tournament at 26 under par. The Wisconsin native played collegiately at the University of Illinois. He says the John Deere Classic is a special place for him as it is so close to home and so many people come to see him play.

After a record setting opening round Paul Goydos had to settle for second place, two shots behind Stricker. Goydos says he played pretty well, but Stricker made a key put on 17 and he says that’s what good golfers do.

The second place finished qualified Goydos for this week’s British Open. He says he’s never been there and he says playing there is the number one goal of the year.

Filed Under: Sports Tagged With:

Bike group trying to get more kids to pedal to school

July 12, 2010 By

A study out earlier this month found more than 65% of Iowans are obese or overweight and the numbers, over the decades, are getting steadily worse. Mark Wyatt, executive director of the Iowa Bicycle Coalition, says one possible solution is to get more kids moving and it can be as simple as changing how they get to school.

“In 1969, about 42% of kids walked and biked to school,” Wyatt says. “It’s dropped down to about 15% of kids that walk and bike to school. Our communities are really set up in good situations. We just need to do some minor improvements, maybe change some attitudes and participation and get kids walking and bicycling to school again.”

The Iowa City-based Iowa Bicycle Coalition is asking for a half-dozen Iowa communities to volunteer to host a free workshop for the Safe Routes to Schools program. Wyatt says it’s a global movement focused on a goal to increase walking and biking for physical and environmental health benefits, as well as to improve unsafe conditions along routes to school. He’s hoping at least six communities in Iowa will volunteer to get the wheels rolling.

“This is the interesting part about the Safe Routes to School program,” Wyatt says. “It takes some involvement from city government. It takes some involvement from the school districts and also some champions within the community who really want to see active change.” He says the free workshops will be highly beneficial for communities who want to improve safety on routes to school and to increase the numbers of walkers and bikers. Wyatt says the program is built on five E’s, including evaluation and enforcement.

“It looks at engineering, how the built environment looks,” Wyatt says. “It looks at education, can we teach more safety for bicyclists and pedestrians in or outside of the school day. It looks at encouragement, are there things we can incentivize students or make contests for them to increase their walking and bicycling habits.” The deadline for communities to apply to become model communities is August 6th. For details, visit: “www.iowasaferoutes.org“.

Filed Under: Health & Medicine, Recreation & Entertainment
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