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Southeastern Community College forfeits the rest of its games

December 30, 2011 By

The most successful program in junior college men’s basketball will not finish out the season. A press release from Southeastern Community College in West Burlington says 10 players were dismissed from the basketball team for “violations” of the college athletic department policy concerning student conduct. All 10 have lost their scholarships.

Head coach Terry Carroll said ins a statement “he is very disappointed” with the players, who he says they are good kids who made some “incredibly irresponsible and poor choices.” The news came after four players were ruled academically ineligible.

Two of the 12 players were not involved and remain on scholarship. Southeastern had a record of 14-4. The school has the most wins of any men’s basketball program in junior college history with 1,613.

By Michael Cation, KBUR, Burlington

Filed Under: Sports Tagged With:

Poison control center sees increase in cases involving “bath salts”

December 30, 2011 By

The abuse of a product known as “bath salts” landed more Iowans in hospitals last week than ever before. Tammy Noble, a registered nurse and spokeswoman for the Iowa Statewide Poison Control Center, says she’s been surprised by the uptick in calls.

Noble says, “Our numbers are increasing and last week we had 17 cases in hospitals across the state which is a record high for us here in Iowa.” Despite efforts by state legislators to ban “bath salts,” they are still legal. Noble says there are reports of people smoking and snorting the powdery substance, which can bring a high like meth or cocaine.

Some abusers of the chemical end up with life-threatening medical conditions. “They can become violent, hard to control,” Noble says. “They can have hallucinations. We’ve even seen some cases where there are seizures. It’s a lot of bizarre behavior that is difficult to control when you’re with someone that is using the drug.”

There were no reported deaths from the consumption of bath salts this week, but she finds the range of people who have sampled it rather alarming. “We’ve seen both males and females that are using it,” Noble says. “It tends to be more teenagers and young adults but our ages have gone even up into the 60s, so it’s pretty diverse across age groups.”

She says there are still multiple reported cases of illness in Iowa due to people smoking synthetic marijuana, or K-2. That product is illegal in Iowa but people are still getting access to it.

The statewide hotline to the poison center is 800-222-1222.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, Health & Medicine, News

Northeast Iowa man sentenced to life on sex assault charge

December 30, 2011 By

Ricky Putnam

A 43-year-old northeast Iowa man will spend the rest of his life in prison for a sex assault that injured a two-year-old girl. Ricky Putnam of Arlington was sentenced on Thursday.

He was convicted on December 12 of first-degree sexual assault causing serious injury. The offense carries a mandatory life term. Police said Putnam assaulted the girl while staying at a friend’s home in Fayette County in May 2010.

The toddler was hospitalized after the attack. According to the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Assistant Iowa Attorney General Denise Timmins said during closing arguments that the girl’s injuries were “not accidental.” She said Putnam “committed what most people would consider an unthinkable, unimaginable act.”

By Chris Berg, KCHA, Charles City

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, News

Desoto National Wildlife Refuge ready to open again after flooding

December 30, 2011 By

The federal wildlife refuge that straddles the Iowa-Nebraska border is reopening next week after months of being closed due to damage caused by this year’s Missouri River flooding. Mindy Sheets, deputy manager at the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge, says they plan to start greeting visitors again right after the holiday weekend.

“We are going to reopen on January 2nd, just in time for ice fishing,” Sheets says. “Folks can come out and drive around the refuge and ice fish, if we have ice by then, and get the refuge back open again for public use.” Sheets says the bulk of the repairs are complete but a few key areas will have to remain off limits.

“The damage that is taking the longest is repairing the visitor’s center,” she says. “The basement was flooded and so the electrical down there, the heating and cooling, that kind of stuff, we’re still working on that. So, the visitor’s center won’t be open yet. We really don’t know when we will have it back open again.”

Sheets says the roads are ready for travelers and one hiking trail is open. She says the nearby Boyer Chute National Wildlife Refuge is still closed due to flood damage. She says, “Boyer suffered more damage especially to the roads system and so forth, so it will remain closed for right now until we can get more equipment and men over there to get it opened back up.”

The DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge is located between Missouri Valley, Iowa, and Blair, Nebraska, on Highway 30.

Filed Under: Environment & Conservation, Fires/Accidents/Disasters, News

Supreme Court issues ruling on challenge of state campaign finance law

December 30, 2011 By

The Iowa Supreme Court has issued a ruling in a case that challenges the state’s campaign finance law. The Iowa Right to Life Committee (IRTL)  challenged an Iowa law covering campaign donations that was created in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in January 2010 that said campaign donations are a form of free speech.

The law would require IRTL and other organizations to file information with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board outlining how much is being spent on a candidate. The pro-life organization said it is unconstitutionally chilled from making such donations due to the burdens imposed by Iowa’s laws and regulations.

The U.S. District Court in Iowa’s southern district denied an injunction to keep the law from being implemented. But the district court asked the Iowa Supreme Court to rule on IRTL’s question of whether a corporation must form a political committee if it wants to spend more than $750 advocating for or against candidates.

The Iowa Supreme Court ruled that although Iowa’s laws are not entirely clear — a corporation like IRTL may advocate for a candidate without forming a political committee.

See the entire ruling here: IRTL ruling PDF

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, News, Politics & Government

Truck driver dies in accident near Duncombe

December 30, 2011 By

A 44-year-old truck driver was killed in a crash on Highway 20 near Duncombe on Thursday afternoon. The Iowa State Patrol identified the victim as Gary M. Sulsberger of Rodney.

Reportedly a 2003 Frieghtliner tractor trailer driven by Sulsberger was traveling eastbound when he drove into the median and went between two guardrails. The semi then struck the drainage ditch embankment where it landed.

Sulsberger was taken to Trinity Regional Medical Center in Fort Dodge where he died of his injuries. The accident remains under investigation.

By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters, News

Campaign Countdown: 12.30.11

December 30, 2011 By

AUDIO

About 120,000 Iowans participated in the Caucuses back in 2008. Iowa GOP chairman Matt Strawn has been asked many times in the past week if turn-out for the 2012 Caucuses will match that.  This is what he told Radio Iowa: “Obviously there’s so many variables that go into it.”

Strawn cited data that shows there are more registered Republican voters in Iowa today compared to four years ago.

“If you were someone who has been motivated to register as a Republican over the last couple of years — and we’ve had 33 straight months of Republican registration gains, then chances are you are sufficiently motivated to show up on Caucus Night,” Strawn said.

Strawn also pointed to the attendance at this summer’s Iowa GOP Straw Poll in Ames as an indicator. It was the second-largest ever — and candidates Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry did not participate in the event.

The party chairman concedes, however, that the barrage of negative campaign advertising on Iowa’s radio and television stations may be a deterrent.

“Political scientists will tell you that that has the potential to chill turn-out and turn some voters off, so I hope that’s not the case because one of the strongest arguments that I can be equipped with to keep defending Iowa as to why we should be first is Iowans showing up to vote on Caucus Night,” Strawn said. “The more Iowans that do so, on either side quite frankly, the stronger arguments the parties have when it comes to keeping Iowa first four years from now.”

Yes, Iowa Democrats are holding Caucuses on Tuesday night, but with an incumbent president, the Democratic meetings have not garnered as much attention. President Obama’s reelection campaign, however, has had eight offices operating throughout the state for months. President Obama is scheduled to connect with Caucus-goers in a live video address on Tuesday night.

Filed Under: 2012 Campaign Countdown Reports
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