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Archive for the ‘IOWA’ Category
Des Moines Iowa Police Officer Clay Blanchard, Involved In An “Open Marriage,” Arrested, Jailed, Charged After Attack On His Wife
July 1st, 2008
DES MOINES, IOWA - A Des Moines senior police officer has been arrested after he allegedly assaulted his wife Friday evening.
Clay Blanchard, 56, of Des Moines, was arrested this morning, according to police.
He was charged with domestic assault causing injury, second-degree harassment and obstructing an emergency phone call and taken to the Polk County Jail. Blanchard’s wife, Angela, 40, was not seriously injured, police said.
Angela Blanchard came back to the couple’s residence Friday evening after having dinner with a man, and her husband reportedly began yelling at her and demanded her cell phone, a police report said.
When Angela refused, the two wrestled for the phone and she threatened to call police. Blanchard then took her cell phone and his wife called police from their home phone.
Angela Blanchard told officers she didn’t want to make a report about the incident, but one was made for documentation, police said.
Read MoreFormer West Des Moines Iowa City Councilman Brad Olson Receives Less Than A Slap On The Wrist In Two Felony Theft Cases
June 29th, 2008
WEST DES MOINES, IOWA - Brad Olson hopes to exit the public sphere now that he made a final appearance in court today for two felony theft cases.
The former West Des Moines city councilman received a deferred judgment this morning for a Polk County theft case in which he pleaded guilty of operating a vehicle without the owner’s consent, an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by up to two years in prison.
Olson was initially charged with first-degree theft, a felony charge that could have carried a 10-year prison sentence. The charge was filed in September after police found a pickup truck behind Olson’s former business in West Des Moines that had been reported stolen from an Ankeny dealership more than three years earlier.
Olson had leased the truck from Dewey Ford, but the lease paperwork was misplaced at the dealership, Olson and Dewey officials have said.
Read MoreCedar Rapids Iowa City Clerks Try To Play Cops, Victim Charged With Assault
June 28th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - Police arrested Justin Anderson, 21, of Hiawatha, on Thursday on charges he assaulted two city workers after he applied for a city contractor’s permit.
As Anderson was applying for a flood recovery permit at 11 a.m. Thursday, a routine background check revealed Anderson was wanted in Linn County on a warrant for domestic abuse assault causing injury.
City workers alerted Cedar Rapids police, and a squad car was sent to the Cedar Rapids Building Department’s temporary location at Westdale Mall.
“(Anderson) got really antsy and had a feeling something wasn’t quite right,” so he tried to leave, said Cedar Rapids police Sgt. Cristy Hamblin.
A city worker put out her hand and told him to stay, police said. Anderson reportedly grabbed her hand and twisted it, hurting her. Police said Anderson then pushed a second city employee who apparently was standing in his way to the ground, causing the man to hit his head on the concrete floor.
Read MoreWapello Iowa Forces Police Officer To Resign Or Be Fired After Flooded Roads Prevented Him From Getting To Work
June 28th, 2008
WAPELLO, IOWA - A local business owner accused city officials Thursday of forcing a Wapello police officer to resign his position after flooding prevented him from getting to work.
Marvin Hardy, owner of The Dugout, said officer Chantz Bieri submitted his resignation after receiving an ultimatum from the city.
“It is my understanding (he) was forced to resign because he did not get to work because of flooding,” Hardy said.
City officials declined to respond, saying they had been advised by the city’s attorney not to comment.
Bieri attended the meeting, but did not speak.
After the meeting, Bieri said he had been stranded in Fruitland over the June 14 weekend because of flooding. He said to get to work on June 14, he would have been forced to travel more than 150 miles one way instead of his normal 15 miles. He had June 15, Father’s Day, off and had planned to spend it with his children. Since he had several days of vacation, sick leave and personal days available, he chose to stay home.
Read MoreCreston Iowa Police Chief James Christensen Fired After Being Charged With Raping Woman Behind Bar At Country Club - Assistant Chief John Sickels, Also Charged, Fired Last Week
June 24th, 2008
CRESTON, IOWA - The Creston police chief has been fired after being charged in the rape of a woman at a country club bar.
City officials announced Tuesday that James Christensen would no longer lead the department. He had been on administrative leave while officials reviewed the case against him.
Christensen and former assistant chief John Sickels are charged with second-degree sexual abuse. Sickels was fired last week.
Investigators say that Sickels raped a woman behind the bar of the Crestmoor Golf Club on April 18 while Christensen watched.
The men were charged earlier this month. If convicted, they face up to 25 years in prison.
The Iowa attorney general’s office is prosecuting the case at the request of the Union County attorney’s office.
Iowa City Gets Around To Charging Drug Dealer A Year After Johnson County Drug Task Force Purchased Cocaine
June 23rd, 2008
IOWA CITY, IOWA - An Iowa City man was arrested Friday for three counts of drug possession after members of the Johnson County Multi-Agency Drug Task Force allegedly made three controlled drug purchases from him in 2007.
Paul Anthony Porter, 30, of 2250 Taylor Drive, faces three charges of controlled substance violation for the delivery of crack cocaine, each a class C felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
According to Iowa City Police complaints:
Members of the Drug Task Force purchased 6.16 grams of crack cocaine from Porter on Jan. 4, 2007, 6.08 grams Feb. 9, 2007 and 2.17 grams June 4, 2007.
Each time the purchased crack cocaine was sent to the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation for testing and returned with positive results that it was the substance. Appeared Here
Iowa Police “Strike Teams” Break Into Flood Victims Homes Without Warrants, Threaten Anyone Who Questions Their Actions - Cedar Rapids Police Chief Greg Graham Lies, Saying Cops Aren’t Breaking Into Homes
June 19th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - Shocking footage out of Cedar Rapids Iowa shows cops and government employee “strike teams” breaking into houses of flood victims and threatening anyone who questions their actions in complete violation of the 4th amendment right that protects against unlawful search and seizure.
Government “Strike Teams” Invade Homes, Harass Flood Victims
Iowa Police State Emerges
IOWA FLOODING RESIDENTS NOW UNDER MARTIAL LAW
UNDECLARED MARTIAL LAW CONTINUES FOR IOWA FLOOD RESIDENTS
No warrant, no knock home invasions are being carried out on the flimsy pretext of “checking for structural damage” as cops harass and threaten with arrest people who refuse to have their homes ransacked by thugs in uniforms.
Cedar Rapids police chief Greg Graham promised residents over the weekend that “Law enforcement officers are not entering homes,” and that firefighters would only enter homes through unlocked doors and windows yet the video clearly shows locked houses being broken in to.
People who attempt to gain access to their home before it has been “cleared” by authorities are being apprehended, and those who attempt to drive around police checkpoints that have been set up in the affected areas are arrested at gunpoint.
“Each strike team consisted of six or seven people, including police, firefighters, utilities workers, and city employees,” reports the Iowa Gazette.
Angela Tague, a member of the STAR 1 search and rescue team from Ames, ran into any angry homeowner on E Avenue NW.
“He was saying ‘Where do you live?’ and ‘How would you like it if someone busted your door open?,” Tague said.
Police Officer Josh Bell later had a heated exchange with the man, and told him that if he didn’t go back inside his house and stop harassing the strike team, he would be escorted out of the area.
The man was visibly agitated about his broken door and pointed at Bell.
“It’s wrong,” the man said, over and over.
So people who are uncomfortable with jackbooted thugs breaking down their door without even knocking and express their distaste for it are to blame for “harassing the strike team”?
Respondents to the You Tube clip and the newspaper article expressed their outrage at the behavior of those in the video tasked with “helping” flood-stricken people yet doing nothing more than intimidating and invading their homes.
“You break down the door of my private residence and when I object you threaten to escort me off my own property. Fine example of police work. Did anyone think to knock first? Thomas Jefferson said that the main reason for citizens to be armed was to protect themselves from tyrannical government. If this isn’t tyranny then I don’t know what is. A man’s home is his castle,” states Steve Delaloye.
“A sad day for America when government thugs abuse the trust of the citizenry like this,” writes one.
“So these cops and fire fighters are part time structural engineers, or what?? What are they inspecting for in the structures? Gas and electric could be shut off at the source, and any spills are so diluted they wont catch fire. The police chief said no police would enter any homes, and what do you know, mr fat ass cop goes piling through the window thinking he’s T.J Hooker. Damn, this is just sad, sad , sad,” adds another.
One Iowa resident expresses her anger that authorities will not let her re-enter her home.
“I sit here with tears streaming down my face. I have been trying to be patient and await to enter my home. Now today, I am told there will be no re-entry’s until further notice. I cannot express how ****ing mad I am. I understand the houses can be unsafe. Just let me at least see my house, so that I can assess if it hit my top floor. I have pictures and memories on my top floor of my deceased mother, all I want to do is rescue those,” she writes.
As we reported in 2005, Hurricane Katrina was exploited by the federal government and used as a martial law drill while victims were abused and treated like rats in a laboratory.
Door to door gun confiscations were ordered and cops ransacked homes and took weapons from multi-million dollar homes which were in the high and dry areas and completely unaffected by the hurricane. In some cases, residents were kicked out of their own homes for no reason.
Outrageous footage showed cops seizing handguns from the home of a grief-stricken old women as they assaulted and punched her in the face.
Where does the government think it derives the authority from to break into people’s homes whose lives have already been devastated by massive floods on the flimsiest of pretexts?
The 4th amendment states, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
Even if there was a legitimate reason to inspect homes, why on earth do they not even bother to knock on the door?
Cops immediately attempt to break in or climb through windows uninvited because this procedure is all about sending a message - when a crisis unfolds we are the bosses and you - the peasants - will yield to our tyranny.
Lawsuits need to be filed immediately by people in Iowa and elsewhere who have had cops invade their homes in complete violation of the 4th amendment and a pretext needs to be set that will put a stop to the government’s routine exploitation of natural disasters as an opportunity to impose martial law measures on needy victims that have already had their lives devastated.
With reports indicating that the Mississippi river is in danger of bursting its banks, the precedent that was set with Hurricane Katrina could be set to advance as government minions and jackbooted thugs across the country lick their lips at the prospect of kicking down more doors and harassing innocent people.
Contact the Iowa ACLU and demand they pressure the authorities to stop these illegal home invasions immediately.
Read MoreIowa State Police Trooper Scott Devereaux And Paul Gardner’s Efforts Against Flood Victim Called “Proper” And Won’t Be Investigated
June 19th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - The Iowa State Patrol said Wednesday that two state troopers were justified in arresting a Cedar Rapids man who tried to run a checkpoint Monday in an effort to return to his flood-damaged home.
The State Patrol will not conduct an internal affairs investigation of the incident, state officials said.
A news photographer captured photos of the incident, which were circulated nationally. The photos showed Trooper Scott Devereaux pointing his gun at the man, Ricky Blazek, 53, while accompanied by Trooper Paul Gardner.
Col. Patrick Hoye, chief of the Iowa State Patrol, released a statement saying the troopers acted appropriately, considering the circumstances.
“At times, photographs tell only part of the story. I can ensure you that this is indeed the case in this situation,” Hoye said.
Law enforcement officers pulled Blazek out of his pickup Monday after he tried to run the checkpoint, according to the Associated Press.
Read MoreTrigger-Happy Des Moines County Iowa Sheriff’s Deputies Shoot And Kill Harmless Pigs Who Swam Through Floodwaters To Safety - Claim They Would “Weaken The Levee”
June 18th, 2008
KINGSTON, IOWA - Luck ran out for about a dozen pigs who escaped their flooded farm, swam through raging floodwaters and scrambled atop a sandbag levee in southeastern Iowa.
Des Moines County sheriff’s officials shot the pigs Tuesday, not long after they reached the levee several miles from the nearest hog farm.
Officials said they killed the pigs over worries that they would weaken the levee. Onlookers said the animals were having a difficult time trying to maneuver their way off the sandbags, and that they scurried back into the water as people approached.
“Basically you cannot have something with a hoof walk on plastic and not poke a hole in the plastic and let water into it,” said LeRoy Lippert, chairman of the county emergency management commission. “Hogs, they have a tendency to root and that would not have been good either.”
Read MoreIowa Police And Firefighter “Strike Teams” Go Door To Door Breaking Into Homes - Threaten Residents
June 17th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - Strike teams searched flood fringe areas on both sides of the Cedar River on Sunday, finding flooded basements, collapsed walls and piles of debris.
But, as of 3:30 p.m., Cedar Rapids Fire Capt. Dan Dall was not aware of any new victims.
“A lot of structural damage in some areas,” he said.
Each strike team consisted of six or seven people, including police, firefighters, utilities workers, and city employees. Dall said they were checking for safety issues, including gas leaks, structural integrity, hazardous materials and air quality.
If it was safe, the home was considered “cleared” and a green sticker was placed on the door.
“The main objective is for citizens to get back into their residences,” said Dall, a search manager with Iowa Task Force One during the flood recovery effort.
Read MoreIowa State Police Officers Are Prepared To Kill Residents To Keep Them From Their Flooded Homes - National Guard Driver Kills Woman Motorist With A Bus
June 16th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - Flooding across Iowa has been linked to at least six deaths and forced tens of thousands of people from their homes, officials said Monday.
The governor’s office reported that a woman was killed near New London after her stopped car was hit by a National Guard bus.
It was not immediately known if the woman was alive when the bus struck her vehicle, but the governor’s office said the fatality brought the flood-related death toll to six.
In Cedar Rapids, residents were allowed to return home temporarily to retrieve keepsakes and other items Sunday, but authorities said Monday that strike teams had determined the neighborhoods were no longer safe, even for a quick visit.
“We are taking a step back,” Cedar Rapids Fire Department spokesman Dave Brown said, adding it would be awhile before evacuees would be permitted to go back home.
Read MoreCreston Iowa Police Chief James Alan Christensen And Assistant Chief John W. Sickels Arrested, Charged With Raping Bartender At Country Club
June 7th, 2008
CRESTON, IOWA - Creston’s two highest-ranked police officers were charged Friday in the alleged rape of a bartender in April at a local country club.
Police Chief James Alan Christensen and Assistant Chief John W. Sickels surrendered to Iowa Department of Public Safety officers in Des Moines. Christensen, 40, and Sickels, 38, were booked at the Polk County Jail on charges of second-degree sexual assault. Bail was set at $25,000 each.
“People make bad judgments, and consequently law enforcement officers are not exempt from that,” John Quinn, assistant director of field operations for the Division of Criminal Investigation, said at a press conference where authorities announced the arrests. “One thing I will say is that officers make mistakes, they make bad errors in judgment, and they will be held accountable.”
Second-degree sexual abuse carries a possible 25-year prison term. The Iowa attorney general will prosecute the case to avoid possible conflicts of interest with the Union County attorney.
Read MoreHero Grandmothers Awarded $750,000 After Illegal Strip Search By Linn County Iowa Jailer Michelle Mais Following Arrest At G.W.Bush Campaign Rally Protest
June 5th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - A federal jury has awarded two President George W. Bush campaign rally protesters $750,000 for being illegally strip-searched at the Linn County Jail in 2004.
The eight-member jury deliberated almost four hours in the U.S. District Court of Northern Iowa civil case of protesters, Alice McCabe and Christine Nelson versus Bruce Macauley, a secret service agent, and Michelle Mais, a former Linn County jailer.
The women sued the defendants for violating their freedom of speech and assembly and equal protection rights.
The jury found in favor of Macauley, the agent who arrested the women for not moving from a secure area in Noelridge Park on Sept. 3, 2004. The jury, according to the verdict form questions, indicated he wasn’t motivated by politics and made a reasonable arrest. Macauley also doesn’t have to pay damages for his part in the incident.
Read MoreDes Moines Iowa Police And FBI Respond To Bogus Bank Robbery Call, Search At Least One Car, And Arrest Three
May 25th, 2008
DES MOINES, IOWA - A comment by a customer at a Clive bank Thursday led a teller to sound a robbery alarm.
Approximately a dozen officers and one FBI agent swarmed the scene and took three people into custody.
Later that afternoon, police said the catalyst for the incident at Bank of the West, 1070 73rd St., was nothing more than a misunderstanding.
One of the men, Delvonn Battle, 26, of Des Moines was arrested, but on charges unrelated to a potential robbery. He was booked after a search of his vehicle turned up marijuana, said Sgt. John Brodersen of the Clive Police Department. The other two were not charged.
Battle entered the bank with a friend, Brandon Finlay, 27, of Des Moines, who wanted to make a withdrawal from a safe-deposit box, Brodersen said.
Read MoreHundreds Of Wetbacks Hid In Church During Immigration Raids On Jewish Postville Iowa Meat Plant - 389 Border-Jumpers Arrested - Half Of School’s 600 Students Absent
May 19th, 2008
“I like my job. I like my work. I like it here in Iowa,” said Escobedo, 38, an illegal immigrant from Yescas, Mexico, who has raised his three children for 11 years in Postville. “Are they mad because I’m working?”
Monday’s raid on the Agriprocessors plant, in which 389 immigrants were arrested and many held at a cattle exhibit hall, was the Bush administration’s largest crackdown on illegal workers at a single site. It has upended this tree-lined community, which calls itself “Hometown to the World.” Half of the school system’s 600 students were absent Tuesday, including 90 percent of Hispanic children, because their parents were arrested or in hiding.
Feds Described Methamphetamine Laboratory In Search Warrant For Nation’s Largest Kosher Slaughterhouse In Postville Iowa - Where 300+ Wetbacks Were Arrested
May 17th, 2008
The charges were among the most explosive details to emerge following the massive raid Monday at Agriprocessors in Postville, Iowa.
In a 60-page application for a search warrant, federal agents revealed details of their six-month probe of Agriprocessors. The investigation involved 12 federal agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the departments of labor and agriculture.
According to the application, a former plant supervisor told investigators that some 80 percent of the workforce was illegal. They included rabbis responsible for kosher supervision, who the source believed entered the United States from Canada without proper immigration documents. The source did not provide evidence for his suspicion about the rabbis.
Pussy Iowa Cops Charge Student With Thowing M&M That Hit Officer’s Shoulder
May 12th, 2008
IOWA - A college student whose friend was being questioned in a hit and run found himself charged with assaulting an officer with a curious choice of weapons: M&Ms.
Sean McGuire was arrested early Sunday at a convenience store after Drake University security guards noticed the colored candies falling on the ground around the officer. When the officer turned around, an M&M hit his shoulder, according to a police report.
McGuire claimed he threw the candy because he was “sticking up for his friend,” who apparently was the man suspected in the accident, the report states.
McGuire, of Glenview, Ill., was released from jail Sunday after posting $1,000 bond. A telephone call to his cell phone Monday wasn’t immediately returned.
Hundreds Of Border Jumping Vermin Arrested At Postville Iowa Meatpacking Plant - 700+ Wetbacks Employed By Agriprocessors Inc. Used Bogus Social Security Numbers
May 12th, 2008
POSTVILLE, IOWA – Buses have begun arriving at the Cattle Congress grounds in Waterloo after hundreds were detained in an immigration raid on a Postville meatpacking plant today.
Officials are not allowing media or others near the entrance. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have declined to say how many buses are being used in the raid on the Agriprocessors Inc. plant.
At least 300 people were arrested during the operation, the largest of its kind in Iowa, said Claude Arnold, a special agent with ICE.
The raid targeted people who illegally used other people’s Social Security numbers and were in the U.S. illegally.
According to an affidavit, “Based on information thus far developed in the investigation, it appears, based on 2007 fourth quarter payroll reports, that approximately 76 percent of the 968 employees of Agriprocessors were using false or fraudulent social security numbers in connection with their employment.”
Read MoreFormer Veteran Cedar Rapids Iowa Police Officer Kevin Sims Pleads Guilty, Sentenced To Just 6 Months In Federal Prison After On Duty Sex With Female Motorist
May 9th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - A former Cedar Rapids police officer was sentenced Thursday to six months in federal prison for engaging in sexual contact with a woman he detained in a traffic stop.
Kevin Sims, 36, pleaded guilty in January to a misdemeanor charge of depriving another person of civil rights under color of state law. As part of a plea agreement, he was required to resign and is permanently barred from serving as an law enforcement officer. He had been with the Cedar Rapids department for 12 years.
In 2004, Sims conducted a bar check while on duty and talked with a woman at the bar whom he met from previous bar checks, according to court records. Sims then stopped the woman about a half-hour later as she was driving down Center Point Road.
Read MoreSerial Child Molester Grayslake Illinois Police Officer Donald Rager Sentenced To Just 31 Years In Federal Prison After Abusing At Least 14 Boys In 4 States
April 24th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - A former police officer accused of sexually abusing 14 boys in four states including Wisconsin was sentenced in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, today to 31 years in prison.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Deegan called 41-year-old Donald Rager one of the more prolific sexual offenders that his office has encountered.
Prosecutors say Rager groomed his victims through Internet chat rooms and instant messaging. He had physical contact with most of them and produced video recordings of sex with them.
Rager, formerly of Grayslake, Illinois, where he was a part-time police officer, pleaded guilty in June 2007 to interstate travel with intent to engage in illicit sex with a minor, production of child pornography and interstate transportation of child pornography.
In the case, Rager was accused of taking a 13-year-old boy to a Dubuque hotel in February 2006 after contacting him in an Internet chat room.
Read MoreCrazed Spencer Iowa Police Hit Woman With Catch-22 Disorderly Conduct Charge With Flipping Off Cop - No First Amendment In Spencer
April 12th, 2008
SPENCER, IA — Police say a 28-year-old woman was arrested this afternoon for disorderly conduct after she “flipped off” a Clay County sheriff deputy during an incident of road rage.
According to a police statement released this evening, Lisa Ann Blazek of Spencer committed the act around 12:20 p.m. today after trying several times to merge her black Ford Escape in heavy traffic on Grand Avenue in Spencer.
The statement indicates Blazek also used profanity at the deputy.
She was later arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and released after posting a $300 bond.
Appeared Here
Former Pottawattamie County Iowa Prosecutor Jeff TeKippe Faces More Drunk Driving Charges - Appealing Conviction For Stealing Evidence
April 5th, 2008
COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA - A former Pottawattamie County prosecutor, who’s appealing his conviction on stealing drug evidence from Council Bluffs police, was arrested again Sunday for suspicion of drunk driving and leaving the scene of an accident. Bluffs police arrested 46-year-old Jeff TeKippe after his neighbors told police that they heard a crash about 12:30 a.m. Sunday and went outside to investigate.
The neighbors said they saw that their son’s vehicle had been struck, and the observed TeKippe backed his vehicle away from the wreck and drive into his garage. One of the neighbors then yelled at TeKippe as he walked from the garage toward his house, but he ignored then. That’s when they called police. Authorities say TeKippe initially cooperated with officers but ultimately refused to do so. He passed out in the back of a cruiser and later arrested after being checked-out at a hospital. Officials say he was released later that same day.
Read MoreDisgraced Former Evansdale Iowa Police Chief Michael Burke Loses Effort To Keep Job After Firing
April 5th, 2008
EVANSDALE, IA — A former Evansdale police chief has lost his bid to keep a job with the city.
Michael Burke, who served almost 10 years as Evansdale’s top cop, challenged his October 2006 firing, saying city officials suspended him for three days and then fired him without proper notice and without a hearing required before the termination.
Then-Mayor John Mardis axed Burke alleging he lost control of his department and no longer had the moral authority to lead following an investigation into a seized power washer and a sexual harassment complaint.
Burke denied the allegations and asked the court to reinstate him as chief pending a civil service hearing. He also wanted an order declaring the mayor exceeded his jurisdiction in the firing and requiring the city to offer him another police position or create a job for him until a regular position becomes open.
Read MoreFormer Cedar Rapids Iowa Police Officer Det. Donald Rosdail And Greg Koenighain Charged With Misconduct In Office
March 26th, 2008
DES MOINES. IOWA — Two former Cedar Rapids police officials were charged on Friday with misconduct in office.
Donald Rosdail, 65, who worked as a police detective, faces four counts of nonfelonious misconduct in office. Greg Koenighain, 41, a former police officer, faces one count.
The charge is a serious misdemeanor and punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $1,875.
Court records said that Rosdail and Koenighain ‘‘did knowingly by color of their office and in excess of their authority’’ commit the acts of misconduct. The incidents happened between April 2006 and September 2006.
The men were summoned to appear before a Linn County District Court judge, but no date was set for the initial appearance.
The Iowa attorney general’s office said it will serve as the prosecutor at the request of the Linn County attorney.
Read MoreFired Guttenberg Iowa Police Officer Sgt. Jerry D. Moser Used Position To Obtain Sex
March 24th, 2008
GUTTENBERG, IA - A Guttenberg police sergeant who allegedly used his position as a law officer to procure sex from women has been fired.
Jerry D. Moser, 44, had worked for the Guttenberg Police Department since January 2004. He also was an instructor at the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy. He was fired in January.
Newly disclosed state records show Moser’s dismissal was tied to a series of incidents involving allegations of improper conduct with women.
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At a recent hearing dealing with Moser’s request for unemployment benefits, Police Chief George Morteo testified that Moser’s wife had reported that her husband was using his position with the department to facilitate affairs with women in the community.
“She was concerned he was abusing his power, using his uniform, to get these women,” Morteo testified.
A few weeks later, local authorities received a call from a woman who owned a Guttenberg bar.
Read MoreFired Cedar Rapids Iowa Police Officers Donald Rosdail And Greg Koenighain Face Criminal Charges
March 22nd, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - Fired police officers Donald Rosdail and Greg Koenighain have been charged by the Iowa Attorney General with nonfelonious misconduct in office.
Rosdail, 65, faces four counts; Koenighain, 41, one.
Each count is a serious misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail upon conviction and a fine of $315 to $1,875.
Each criminal count alleges the same basic criminal violation: that the officer “did knowingly by color of their office and in excess of their authority” require a citizen to do something or refrain from doing something.
Three of the four counts involve behavior in 2006 in which Rosdail questioned people in an alleged effort to help his son in a court custody dispute unrelated to Rosdail’s job. Koenighain allegedly helped in one instance.
In the fourth matter, Rosdail is accused of interrogating a woman in April 2006 to help a relative.
Read MoreDubuque Iowa Police Officer Kurt Rosenthal Returns To Work After Suspension For Drunken Sexual Harassment Phone Messages To Female Co-Worker
March 19th, 2008
DUBUQUE, IOWA - A Dubuque police officer accused of making drunken, inappropriate calls to a female co-worker will return to work with a 30-day suspension on his record.
Officer Kurt Rosenthal was accused of placing several calls to Officer Jamie Bowers’ cell phone while out with other off-duty officers and leaving sexually harassing messages last October
Rosenthal was fired Nov. 28, but then in December the Dubuque Civil Service Commission reversed the termination and turned the time into a suspension.
A Dubuque County District court judge ruled last Monday that he can return to work with the 30-day suspension noted on his record.
The city had appealed the commission’s decision and attempted to terminate Rosenthal’s employment. Dubuque City Manager Michael Van Milligen says the city will now take its case to the state appeals court.
Webster City Iowa Basketball Coach Does The Right Thing And Kills Himself After Child Pornography Arrest - Videotaped Teen Boys In Shower
March 7th, 2008
DES MOINES, IOWA - A former Webster City middle school basketball coach accused of videotaping teen boys in a shower committed suicide Thursday in a South Dakota jail, officials said.
Shawn Mofle, 41, was to have appeared in U.S. District Court in Sioux City on Thursday morning on an eight-count indictment charging him with six counts of producing child pornography and two counts of possessing child pornography.
His body was found in the Union County jail in Elk Point, S.D., about 7:30 a.m. as jail staff was serving breakfast.
Chief Deputy Myron McDaniel of the U.S. Marshals Service in Cedar Rapids said it appeared that Mofle hanged himself.
Mofle’s body was turned over to the medical examiner and an autopsy was expected to be performed within the next couple of days, McDaniel said.
He said the Marshals Service and the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation were investigating Mofle’s death.
Read MoreFormer Clayton County Iowa Deputy Sheriff Terry Lee Austin Pleads Guilty To On Duty Lascivious Acts With A Child For A Slap On the Wrist
March 6th, 2008
ELKADER, IOWA - Terry Lee Austin, 46, a former Clayton County Sheriff’s deputy, has pleaded guilty to charges of lascivious acts with a minor and misconduct in office.
Judge Margaret Lingreen sentenced him Feb. 25 to a year in jail on each count but suspended all but 20 days of the jail term.
Austin, who resigned from the Sheriff’s Office during the investigation, was also sentenced to two years’ probation.
Clayton County Sheriff Robert Hamann declined to go into detail about Austin’s offense but said it happened last April, involved a minor female and was committed while Austin was on duty.
The Sheriff’s Office suspended Austin without pay while it conducted an internal investigation, which was later transferred to the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Hamann said.
Former Mason City Iowa Police Officer Daniel Mason Loses Appeal After Conviction For Invading Woman’s Home And Assaulting Her - Currently Serving 2 Years In Unreleated Sexual Abuse Assault Case
March 2nd, 2008
MASON CITY, IOWA - A former Mason City police officer has lost his appeal on criminal trespass and assault charges.
In 2006, a jury found 41-year-old Daniel Mason guilty of entering a woman’s home without consent and assaulting her.
Mason said in his appeal that there was insufficient evidence to support the conviction.
He claims he had permission to be in the woman’s house and that the assault did not occur.
The appeals court ruled there was substantial evidence to support the conviction.
The Police Department fired Mason after an internal investigation of alleged off-duty misconduct.
He’s serving a two-year prison sentence on a conviction of assault to commit sexual abuse in 2005. That case is not related to the two convictions in the appeal.
Wright County Iowa Deputy Sheriff Jeffrey Donald Mericle Arrested, Suspended, Charged With Domestic Abuse And Harassment
February 26th, 2008
WRIGHT COUNTY, IOWA - Authorities are now releasing details about last week’s arrest of a 39-year-old Goldfield man who serves as a sheriff’s deputy in north-central Iowa. Jeffrey Donald Mericle is charged with first-degree harassment and domestic abuse assault.
The arrest stemmed from an investigation initiated after a complaint was lodged with the Wright County Sheriff’s office by Mericle’s wife, 38-year-old Tiffini, regarding a domestic disturbance that reportedly took place early last Thursday morning at a residence in Goldfield. The Wright County Sheriff’s Office asked the D.C.I. to conduct the investigation since Jeffrey Mericle is a deputy with the Wright County Sheriff’s Department.
Mericle made his initial appearance before a Wright County Magistrate last Friday and was released on his own recognizance. He is currently on paid administrative leave from the Sheriff’s Department.
Former Woodbury County Iowa Corrections Officer Joshua Brunsting Arrested On Child Sexual Abuse Charges
February 24th, 2008
HAWARDEN, IOWA - Inappropriate text messages have led to the arrest of a former correctional officer on charges of sexual abuse involving two under age girls.
Joshua Brunsting, of Sioux City, was charged this week with third-degree sexual abuse as well as sexual exploitation of a minor.
Woodbury County Sheriff Glenn Parrett says Brunsting had worked at the Woodbury County Jail until he resigned his position on Friday.
According to the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office, officers from the Hawarden Police Department and the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office responded to West Sioux High School in Hawarden after a report of inappropriate text messages.
The sheriff’s office says the text messages were found on a student’s cell phone that were of a sexual nature.
Brunsting could face up to 17 years in prison for both charges. He would also be required to register as a sex offender if convicted.
Read MoreState Of Iowa Destroys A Child’s Life, Brands Him A Sex Offender For Life, For Doing What Kids Do
February 24th, 2008
IOWA - When Ricky was 16, he went to a teen club and met a girl named Amanda, who said she was the same age. They hit it off and were eventually having sex. At the time Ricky thought it was a pretty normal high school romance.
Two years later, Ricky is a registered sex offender, and his life is destroyed.
Amanda turned out to be 13. Ricky was arrested, tried as an adult, and pleaded guilty to the charge of lascivious acts with a child, which is a class D felony in Iowa. It is not disputed that the sex was consensual, but intercourse with a 13-year-old is illegal in Iowa.
Ricky was sentenced to two years probation and 10 years on the Iowa online sex offender registry. Ricky and his family have since moved to Oklahoma, where he will remain on the state’s public registry for life.
Read MoreFormer Oelwein Iowa Police Officer David Bloem On Trial In Federal Civil Case After Beating Man
February 21st, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA — A former Oelwein police officer on trial on brutality charges testified that he regrets the obscenities he used during the arrest and booking of Jason Annis, a methamphetamine user.
“I typically don’t swear,” said David Bloem when he took the stand Wednesday. “Out of this whole thing, this is the one thing I wish I could take back.”
Bloem is on trial in federal court in a civil case brought by Annis seeking compensation for his injuries he received at the hands of Bloem during a July 29, 2004, arrest. Annis is in a federal prison in California for his use and manufacture of methamphetamine.
Chief Judge Linda Reade dismissed the case against the town of Oelwein and indicated she is unlikely to allow Annis to seek punitive damages.
Read MoreFiring Of Lying Veteran Cedar Rapids Iowa Police Officers Det. Don Rosdail And Inv. Greg Koenighain Upheld By Civil Service Commission
February 20th, 2008
CEDAR RAPIDS, IOWA - In a terse, bare-knuckled ruling, the city’s Civil Service Commission on Tuesday upheld the August firings of two veteran police officers, Don Rosdail and Greg Koenighain.
The three-member commission, which heard testimony on the firings over three days in November, concluded that “the facts clearly establish” that the two officers used their authority as police officers to conduct “improper and unauthorized investigations” and to “intimidate citizens.”
The commission members went further, calling the two officers liars.
“… (T) he Commission concludes that both Detective Rosdail and Investigator Koenighain have lied during the internal investigation and have also lied in their testimony before the commission,” the commission ruling states. “This fact alone would justify the action taken by the Cedar Rapids Police Department in terminating the employment of these officers.”
Read MoreLawsuit Charges Johnson County Iowa Sheriff’s Department With Man’s Wrongful Arrest
February 18th, 2008
JOHNSON COUNTY, IOWA - A man who said he was wrongly arrested by the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office has sued Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek.
According to a lawsuit filed on Feb. 13, Michael Green was arrested on Jan. 7 by a sheriff’s deputy who said he had a warrant for Green’s arrest. Green told the deputy that the warrant had been recalled. However, according to the lawsuit, Green was arrested and held in Johnson County Jail for the entire night.
According to the lawsuit, on Jan. 8, Green was released from custody and allegedly informed that his arrest was a mistake as the warrant was not valid.
The lawsuit alleges that Pulkrabek was negligent in allowing Green’s arrest by failing to make sure his arrest warrant was valid.
Green said he was unable to go to work at General Mills in Cedar Rapids on Jan. 8 because of his arrest. He is seeking an undisclosed amount of compensation.
Read MoreFormer Iowa State Trooper Karl Kluender, On Probation After Molesting His Niece, Arrested, Charged With Child Pornography
February 10th, 2008
AMES, IOWA - A former Iowa state trooper with a history of sexual misconduct was arrested Friday on federal child pornography charges after illegal images were found to be in his possession.
Karl Kluender, 40, of Ames, was charged with possession and receipt of child pornography after pornographic images of children were found on computers he owned by a probation officer during a routine probation home check on June 8, 2007.
Kluender went to court days after the images were found and was released on $10,000 bond.
Kluender was charged in 2005 with second-degree sexual abuse, which carries a prison term of up to 25 years, after his niece told authorities that Kluender molested her in the early 1990s when she was 7.
Kluender was placed on probation after he pleaded guilty later that year to a reduced charge of indecent contact with a child, an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by up to two years in prison.
Read MoreVeteran Dubuque Iowa Police Officer Kurt Rosenthal Fired After Investigation Into Drunken Calls To Female Co-Worker And Admitting To Drunk Driving
February 2nd, 2008
DUBUQUE, IOWA — A Dubuque police officer accused of making drunken, inappropriate calls to a female co-worker awaits a court hearing to determine whether he will keep his job.
Officer Kurt Rosenthal was fired Nov. 28 after an investigation into the calls, said Police Chief Kim Wadding. In December, the Dubuque Civil Service Commission voted 2-1 to reverse the termination and turn the time into a suspension. Rosenthal was placed on paid administrative leave until his court hearing Feb. 29, Wadding said.
Rosenthal is accused of placing several calls to Officer Jamie Bowers’ cell phone while out with other off-duty officers and leaving sexually harassing messages in the early morning hours of Oct. 26, according to Civil Service Commission meeting minutes. He and co-workers had been drinking heavily, and Rosenthal also admitted to driving while intoxicated that night.
Read MoreUrbandale Iowa Investigates NASA Rocket On High School Roof After Moron Calls 911
January 31st, 2008
URBANDALE, IOWA - Forget the fire department. And don’t call NASA.
The rocket — and the flames that spit inside it — are supposed to be on the roof of Urbandale High School.
Of course, someone should have told the neighbor who called 911 last week. And it’s still unclear whether a school administrator was joking when he suggested that federal space officials should be called to see if they had lost something important.
The explanation is, well, “not rocket science,” said John Lees, the district’s supervisor of maintenance and construction.
The “rocket” is a portable heater that protects paint and drywall from cold weather during a construction project.
Workers for the contractor noticed the device’s resemblance to a rocket, so they decided to take the joke one step further with space-age fins and NASA logos. The result was a goof on the roof.
Read MoreAppeal Could Put Disgraced And Fired Dubuque Iowa Police Officer Kurt W. Rosenthal Back On The Force
January 31st, 2008
DUBUQUE, IOWA - A Dubuque police officer accused of drinking excessive amounts of alcohol and driving home and leaving sexually explicit phone messages for a co-worker could return to duty or find himself out of a job, depending on the outcome of an upcoming appeals process.
Dubuque Police Officer Kurt W. Rosenthal was terminated Nov. 28 by Dubuque City Manager Mike Van Milligen, according to documents filed in Dubuque County District Court.
An internal police investigation revealed Rosenthal left sexually explicit phone messages on fellow officer Jamie Bowers’ phone in violation of the Police Department’s personal conduct and sexual harassment general orders.
Rosenthal admitted allegations about the phone calls appeared correct, though he could not fully remember making them because he was intoxicated, Police Chief Kim Wad