May 19, 2013

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Two charged after anglers and hunters get into fight in southwest Iowa

May 7, 2013 By

Two southwestern Iowa men are charged in connection with a shooting incident last night that followed a confrontation between two groups of outdoor enthusiasts. Pottawattamie County Sheriff Jeff Danker says the fishermen and the hunters got into a spat at the Farm Creek Wildlife area, east of Carson — and the shouting eventually led to shooting.

Danker says the fishermen yelled at the men who were target shooting to stop because the gunfire was scaring the fish. “I’m sure there were some unkind words said back and forth, and finally one group said ‘Hey, we’re going to call the cops.’”

The target shooters loaded up their boat and proceeded to leave when Danker says two shots were allegedly fired at the fishermen. Deputies pulled over the pickup and arrested 21-year old Newberry Wright and 23-year old Alex Kinser, both of Oakland.

The sheriff says one weapon was a Smith and Wesson .500 Magnum, a very large and powerful handgun. Wright, the driver, is charged with operating while intoxicated, reckless use of firearms and operating while revoked. Kinser is charged with intimidation with a dangerous weapon, reckless use of a firearm, and shooting over water, and manner of conveyance.

By Ric Hanson, KJAN, Atlantic

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, News Tagged With:

Senate votes against new liability protections for farmers

April 29, 2013 By

A bid to respond to a February ruling by the Iowa Supreme Court and give landowners new protection against liability lawsuits has failed in the Iowa Senate.

A 1967 Iowa law grants liability protection to private property owners who allow recreation, like hunting and fishing, on their property. The Iowa Supreme Court ruled in February that liability protection does not extend to a farmer who was giving a farm tour to kids from Oelwein when one of the chaperones was injured by a fall out of the hay loft.

Senator Ken Rozenboom, a Republican from Oskaloosa, is a farmer.

“It isn’t much of a stretch to understand why landowners would be nervous with that decision,” Rozenboom said. “And the reason they’re nervous is because the trust has been breached.”

Senator Tim Kapucian, a Republican, farms near Keystone, Iowa.

“If we don’t do something to address this issue, life in Iowa will change,” Kapucian said. “Iowans will have less access to huntable ground, less access for mushroom hunting, deer hunting, pheasant hunting.”

Senator Rob Hogg of Cedar Rapids is a lawyer.

“Don’t buy into the hysteria about this decision,” Hogg said.

According to Hogg, the kind of “absolute immunity” from lawsuits outlined in the proposal was “nonsense.”

“We do not have to immunize anything any farmer, any landowner anywhere in the state ever does,” Hogg said.

The Senate voted 26 to 21 against providing new legal liability protection for landowners. The vote came during debate of a bill that addresses a wide range of spending and policy issues. Legislative leaders have the authority to introduce bills at any time and they are discussing how to craft a more scaled-back response to the controversial Iowa Supreme Court ruling.

Filed Under: Agriculture, Featured Story, News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , , ,

Governor’s son likely to be confirmed to state post

March 4, 2013 By
Marcus Branstad

Marcus Branstad

The chairman of a key senate committee sees no hurdles in confirming Republican Governor Terry Branstad’s son to be a member of the Iowa Natural Resources Commission.

Senator Dick Dearden, a Democrat from Des Moines, is chairman of the Senate Natural Resources Committee.

“To have somebody young on the commission really makes a difference to me,” Dearden says. “Too many times it’s people who are too old to be there, maybe. They’re my age and just to have a young perspective on there, I think’s excellent.”

Marcus Branstad, the governor’s youngest child, is 29 years old. Dearden, who is 74, went dove hunting with Marcus Branstad, the governor and several others on the first day dove hunting was allowed in Iowa.

Dearden describes the governor’s son as a “nice young man.”  “He’s an avid hunter and I think we really need that,” Dearden says.

Senator Rob Hogg, a Democrat from Cedar Rapids, is another member of the senate committee that will review Marcus Branstad’s nomination. Hogg notes it’s an unpaid position within state government.

“I don’t think he should be necessarily precluded from serving because he’s the governor’s son,” Hogg says, adding: “You know, if he gets on there, maybe he’d help Governor Branstad finally do something for natural resources.”

Senator Brian Schoenjahn, a Democrat from Arlington, is a member of the Senate Natural Resources Committee, too. Schoenjahn says Marcus Branstad “would be good” for the state commission.

“I think he would add some knowledge,” Schoenjahn says. “He is a hunter, my understanding is — an avid outdoorsman.”

The governor says he “personally” talked with the top Democrat in the Senate and Senator Gronstal “has no problem” with Marcus Branstad serving in this post.

“My son, Marcus, loves to hunt, loves to fish. He is a strong advocate for the natural resources,” Terry Branstad says. “He also has a lot of friends on both sides of the aisle and he wanted to be appointed two years ago, and I told him, ‘No.’”

Marcus has a hunting license “for every species” that’s available according to his father.

“He’s got eight deer stands in three counties. He’s a bow hunter. He hunts with a shot gun and he does it with a muzzleloader. He hunts ducks and geese. He fishes. He ice fishes,” the governor says. “I mean, I don’t know of anybody that’s more of a sportsman or follows these things closer than Marcus Branstad, so just because he’s my son should not prevent him from serving as a volunteer on this important commission.”

Marcus Branstad works for the American Chemistry Council. He holds a political science degree from Buena Vista College and had worked on campaigns for Mitt Romney, Congressman Tom Latham and Iowa Ag Secretary Bill Northey.

Filed Under: Environment & Conservation, News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , ,

Governor’s son to have role in shaping state hunting regulations

March 1, 2013 By

Governor Branstad has appointed his youngest son to the state commission that oversees hunting regulations.

Twenty-nine-year-old Marcus Branstad will be a voting member of the Iowa Natural Resources Commission as of May 1, if the Iowa Senate confirms the appointment. It’s an unpaid position.

Marcus Branstad was among the crowd in his father’s statehouse office in 2011 when Governor Branstad signed a bill that legalized dove hunting in Iowa.

“This kid loves to hunt — a lot of different species,” Branstad said, laughing as he added: “And this is one more.”

Marcus Branstad was in the governor’s hunting party the first weekend of 2013 when Terry Branstad bagged an eight-point buck. The Natural Resources Commission on which Marcus Branstad has been appointed to serve was recently in the spotlight for proposing rules that forbid the use of lead shot during dove hunting season. More than a year ago, the governor publicly noted his son testified against the proposal during a public hearing.

“He was one that felt it was inappropriate for the DNR commission to go against the wishes of the legislature,” the governor told reporters last year.

Branstad issued an executive order in 2012 to overturn the policy and allow the use lead shot during dove hunting season.

Marcus Branstad’s name is among dozens on a list of the governor’s appointments to state boards and commissions. All must win confirmation from 34 of the 50 members of the Iowa Senate in order to serve. 

Branstad has appointed the chairman of the board that governs the state universities to another term. Former Iowa Farm Bureau president Craig Lang’s current term on the Iowa Board of Regents expires April 30th. Branstad also named a doctor from Webster City and a businessman from Grimes as new members of the Board of Regents.

The governor also reappointed several top administrators, asking Terry Rich to stay on as head of the Iowa Lottery and Timothy Orr to remain the Iowa National Guard’s adjutant-general.

Branstad named several former state legislators to key positions in state government. 

Republican Representative Nick Wagner of Marion lost his bid for reelection last November. Branstad has appointed Wagner to serve on the Iowa Utilities Board, a job that comes with a six figure salary. However, most of the 700 Iowans who serve on state boards and commissions are volunteers and only receive compensation for travel and meal expenses.

Branstad has named former Republican Representative Richard Arnold of Russell to the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission. Arnold did not seek reelection in 2012. It means three of the five commission members will be former legislators.

Another legislator who didn’t run for reelection in 2012 — former State Senator Tom Rielly of Oskaloosa — is to become a member of the Iowa Transportation Commission. Rielly, a Democrat, was an advocate for a state gas tax increase when he served in the senate.

Former State Senator Maggie Tinsman of Bettendorf, a Republican candidate of the U.S. Senate in 1998, has been appointed to a state council to find ways to prevent disabilities. Retired Republican lawmaker Willard Jenkins of Waterloo will become a member of the Iowa Commission on Aging. Insurance agent Bob Skow, a former Democratic member of the Iowa House, has been appointed to the board that oversees the state HAWK-I program that provides health insurance to children in low-income households.

Sandra Blodgett of Clear Lake, the wife of former Republican Representative Gary Blodgett, will serve on the Commission on Judicial Qualifications.

Tahira Hira, a former Iowa State University professor who is now a senior policy advisor to ISU’s president, has been appointed to the Credit Union Review Board.

Filed Under: Featured Story, News, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Iowa Deer Classic opens today

March 1, 2013 By
Matt Stutzman

Matt Stutzman

Some 20,000 deer hunters from across the region will be in central Iowa this weekend, hunting for new gear and to boost their skills.

The Iowa Deer Classic opens today in Des Moines, featuring more than 300 exhibitors and a range of seminars and demonstrations.

The show’s producer, John Bunge, says it’s the place to go to admire trophy antlers.

“First is the Big Buck Contest and we’re looking at 300 to 400 deer just from Iowa hunters that come in here,” Bunge says.

“That in itself is a premiere antler display. If you took that to any other state, they wouldn’t believe it. We also have the Hall of Fame display.” That features at least another hundred trophy buck heads from previous Big Buck competitions.

One of this year’s special guests is Matt Stutzman of Fairfield, who’s known as “The Armless Archer.” Bunge says Stutzman won the silver medal for the U.S. team in the 2012 Paralympic Games in London and he’s a long-range archery world record holder.

“He shoots with his feet and his mouth, nobody helps him,” Bunge says. “In the Olympics, he was competing against guys with arms, sitting in wheelchairs. He’s quite a shot and he’ll give a neat and funny, inspirational story on stage and then he’ll show people how he shoots.”

Attractions include: the Legendary Classic 300 Archery Tournament and Bow Hunters Challenge 3-D Pop-Up Shoot, and kids activities like a free archery range, free B-B gun shooting and bird house building. The Iowa Deer Classic runs through Sunday at the Iowa Events Center.

Learn more at www.iowadeerclassic.com

Filed Under: News, Recreation & Entertainment Tagged With:

Bill would increase land available for hunting preserves

February 13, 2013 By

A bill that has passed its first step in the Iowa Senate Tuesday would allow more farmers to create game preserves on their land to boost pheasant hunting in the state. The bill allows landowners to offer hunting on as little at 40 acres of land for pheasants, quail and partridges.

Senator Steve Sodders, a Democrat from State Center, says pheasant hunting has deteriorated dramatically in Iowa. “Farming has tore out trees we’re losing habitat. So, I think it’s much easier for someone with land out there to be able to find 40 acres along a certain waterway or tree line that they are not going to take out, as opposed to trying to take out a big chunk all in one spot,” Sodders says.

Current law requires landowners to have at least 320 acres of land for game preserves. Sodders says there are benefits for hunters and everyone else when the birds are released.

He says the owners put the birds out in the morning before the hunt. Some of the birds are going to get away, and they’re going to hunt some of them. Lack of habitat is one of the factors cited in the decline of pheasant numbers in the state, along with poor weather conditions that have hurt the development of young birds.

Filed Under: News, Politics & Government, Recreation & Entertainment Tagged With: , ,

Man dies after falling through ice on farm pond

February 11, 2013 By

A weekend mishap on thin ice proved fatal in southwest Iowa. Authorities say 62-year old James Alan Wallace, of Casey, died after falling through the ice while fishing on a private farm pond about six-miles southwest of Menlo.

Wallace’s family members had reported him missing to the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office after he failed to return home from ice fishing Friday afternoon. Following a search of the area where Wallace was believed to have been fishing, an Adair County Sheriff’s deputy located the man’s vehicle near a farm pond, and shortly thereafter saw Wallace’s body in the water.

He was pulled from the pond by rescue personnel and pronounced dead at the scene, by the Adair County Medical Examiner.

By Ric Hanson, KJAN, Atlantic

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters, News Tagged With:
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