Child Abuse

New York nanny remembers her roots (01/09/10)
After spending many hours thumbing through the wish book filled with quality educational materials, Missy Lair has practically every page in the latest Lakeshore Learning catalog memorized. Since receiving word that she's won the latest Max and Charlie Garner Grant, the local registered child care provider can finally order the items she and the eight children she watches have been dreaming about. ...

Spencer police charge area man with abuse, possession (12/29/09)
Spencer Police officers were forced to kick in a door and taser 19-year-old Terrell Ramon Alfaro after responding to a call in the 2100 block of 10th Avenue East at 3:37 a.m. on Dec. 24. The entry led to multiple charges include domestic abuse and possession of marijuana with intent to deliver among others...

Salesman's grab leads to charges (11/13/09)
A 71-year-old, door-to-door magazine salesman faces a charge of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse after he allegedly groped a potential customer during a house call. Clay County Deputies were called to a Webb neighborhood at about 7:30 p.m. Monday after a resident called authorities to report an incident of sexual misconduct...

Holiday Family Adoption under way (11/10/09)
The Holiday Family Adoption program kicks off today with the first listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Sex abuse suspect recaptured after 11 years (11/05/09)
Sometimes the wheels of justice are slow, but they never stop turning. Just ask Alejandro Montano, a current resident of the Buena Vista County Jail. After more than 11 years on the run from charges including sexual abuse, false imprisonment and drugs in Storm Lake, a false identity, and an alleged lifetime web of lies, Mantano has been found in Chicago and returned to face the charges for a February 1998 incident...

Rep. King wades into Limbaugh, Rams ownership (10/30/09)
U.S. Rep. Steve King used a Capitol Hill appearance by Roger Goodell to press the NFL Commissioner about conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh, who was removed from a group trying to purchase the St. Louis Rams. Goodell was testifying before a House Judiciary Committee hearing Wednesday to examine the long-term effects of head injury among NFL players...

Mercy on wheels (10/27/09)
The normally calm neighborhoods of Aurelia were disrupted Saturday afternoon by a distant rumbling that turned into a deafening roar as it approached. As the collection of revving engines rolled past unsuspecting residences, doors opened and neighbors peered through their windows. A leather clad legion of motorcycle riders had invaded the rural Iowa community. ...

Clay County receives small amount of H1N1 vaccine (10/20/09)
With just small amounts of H1N1 vaccine arriving in Clay County, public health officials are finding the priority groups established by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) are beneficial in making distribution decisions. "We have received a limited doses of H1N1 vaccine to date which is not enough to vaccinate the priority groups at this point, let alone others in the county who would like this protection," explained Colette Rossiter, Clay County Public Health nurse. ...

OB restrictions in place as H1N1 surfaces in county (10/10/09)
Two cases of H1N1, or "swine flu" virus has been confirmed in Clay County by the University of Iowa Hygienic Laboratory, according to Colette Rossiter, Clay County Public Health Nurse. "Both patients were tested for influenza at Avera Spencer Family Care," Rossiter said, in a statement from Spencer Hospital administration. ...

Law change reflected in new registry list (10/10/09)
For the first time in its monthly update, the Clay County Sheriff's summary of residents with sex offense-related convictions includes A tier classification to reflect changes in Iowa Sex Offender Registry laws. Technology specialists at the Iowa Department of Public Safety reviewed the profiles of about 5,000 Iowans on the state's sex offender registry as part of a new law that attempts to more closely monitor the most dangerous offenders...

Rembrandt man face vehicular homicide charge (09/05/09)
Felony charges, including vehicular homicide, have been filed against a Rembrandt man involved in a head-on collision earlier this summer. Troopers from the Iowa State Patrol and deputies from the Buena Vista County Sheriff's Department took 39-year-old Matthew Wrather into custody on Thursday. He was booked into the Buena Vista County Jail on charges of felony homicide by motor vehicle, felony serious injury by motor vehicle and felony child endangerment resulting in death...

Registry violation leads to arrest (07/30/09)
A former Spencer man on the Iowa Sex Offender Registry was taken into custody at 9 a.m. Wednesday after deputies say he moved without notifying authorities. Michael James Sellers is on the Iowa Sex Offender Registry after a 2002 Plymouth County conviction of third-degree sexual abuse involving a female age 14-17...

Sex offender classification under way (07/16/09)
Technology specialists are reviewing the profiles of about 5,000 Iowans on the state's sex offender registry as part of a new law that attempts to more closely monitor the most dangerous offenders. James Saunders, assistant director for the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation said work is well under way and could be completed in about a month. Beginning July 1, people with a sexual offense in their history were to be classified into three tiers...

Cybercrime unit searches Spencer, Storm Lake homes (05/28/09)
State and federal agents went to three areas homes - two in Spencer and one in Storm Lake - Tuesday after suspicious Internet traffic was detected by authorities. Investigators used Internet Protocol (IP) addresses to trace suspicion of child exploitation to specific computers. Agents then executed the first of three search warrants at about 8 a.m. Tuesday at 1342 S. Grand Plaza Dr., in Spencer. A second search, at 906 Second Ave. SE, was completed just before noon...

Thuringer retiring after 35 years of tending to area youth (05/19/09)

Officers lobby for sex offender law reforms (04/22/09)
Clay County Sheriff Randy Krukow was among the group of officers and prosecutors Monday night who called on the Legislature overhaul Iowa's sex abuse laws. Krukow supports a proposed bill, which divides persons convicted of a sexual offense into three tiers. ...

Offender charged after listing park as address (04/04/09)
A Spencer man faces a Class D felony charge for violating the guidelines of the Iowa Sex Offender Registry after he failed to report a valid address to Clay County deputies. According to Clay County Sheriff Randy Krukow, 29-year-old Allen Mills listed "DeWolf Park" in Spencer as his intended address when he discharged from the state prison system on March 21...

Pipe bomb found during warrant check (02/28/09)
Time and the judicial process will have to determine the accuracy of a novelty T-shirt worn by Alexander Larson as he was photographed during processing at the Clay County Jail. For now, the 19-year-old Spencer man -- who in his mug shot sports a T-shirt that features a definition of the word "loser" -- faces some fairly serious charges...

Shayla Bee advocating for Alex (01/06/09)
The Jeff and Lori Hermstad family of Storm Lake, which includes their 15-year-old identical twin daughters Jaci and Alexandria "Alex" Hermstad, has an advocate. That proponent -- members of the Shayla Bee Fund -- wants to raise awareness about Alex, who for nearly four years has been fighting an undiagnosed condition that currently has her paralyzed, yet fighting for life...

Holiday gifts distributed (12/23/08)
Spencer volunteer fire fighters and UPS drivers braved the elements Sunday to deliver Holiday Family Adoption gifts throughout Spencer. Ninety families in Clay County will have a merrier Christmas, thanks to the giving spirit of area residents. Spencer Rotary members delivered gifts to residents outside of Spencer. The program has been a part of Clay County Christmas seasons for nearly 30 years...

SMS condo agreement on Tuesday's board agenda (12/13/08)
The Spencer Community Schools Board of Education will convene its regular monthly meeting at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 16 in the board room of the central administrative offices, located at 23 E. Seventh St. Following a public hearing on Community Housing Initiatives (CHI) and a proposed condominium agreement relating to the old Spencer Middle School building, action is anticipated to be taken by the board...

Holiday Adoption first drop off date Saturday (12/12/08)
Northwest Iowa, you did it! All 90 families on the list for the Holiday Family Adoption program have been "adopted," and will have a happier holiday thanks to the generosity of the area's residents. Now it's time to gather the gifts in anticipation of delivery by the Spencer Volunteer Firemen, UPS drivers and Spencer Rotary members...

Bo celebrating successful transplant anniversary (12/11/08)
Bohdan "Bo" Kiyanchuk is marking the one-year anniversary of his successful kidney transplant today. After news came last May that the 17-year-old, who hails from the village of Sadki in Ukraine, was critically ill and his remaining kidney would not last much longer, Dr. Ken and Karen Hunziker, who have served as Bo's local proxy parents over the last few years as he's undergone various hospitalizations and treatments, began working to ensure that a transplant could happen...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 11 (12/04/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 10 (12/03/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program (12/02/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 9 (11/29/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 8 (11/28/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 7 (11/26/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 6 (11/22/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 5 (11/21/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 4 (11/20/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Fire Department encouraging high school students to volunteer (11/19/08)
Growing up in LeMars, Dave Schipper had an opportunity to explore his interest in fire fighting while still in high school as part of an auxiliary program through the local volunteer fire department. It stuck. In addition to serving as a member of Spencer's volunteer fire fighting force, Schipper is employed as a part of Iowa's Fire Marshal unit. Not only does he battle the blazes but he investigates the cause...

Iowa KidsNet to hold orientation in Spencer (11/19/08)
Iowa KidsNet, the statewide organization that recruits, trains, licenses and supports Iowa's foster and adoptive families, will hold an orientation in Spencer on Tuesday, Dec. 2, for individuals interested in becoming foster or adoptive parents. Foster care is the temporary placement of children with families outside of their own home due to abuse, neglect or other family crisis situations. ...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 3 (11/19/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Holiday Family Adoption Program 2 (11/18/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program continues with a listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Sex offender registry violations lead to arrests (11/15/08)
Clay County Deputies have filed a series of charges in recent weeks regarding violations to Iowa's Sex Offender Registry law. Deputies charged 24-year-old Dana Igou of Spencer with failure to comply as a sex offender, which is a Class D felony. He was held in jail to appear before a magistrate on a $5,000 bond...

Holiday Family Adoption Program begins today (11/12/08)
The Holiday Family Adoption Program kicks off today with the first listing of families in The Daily Reporter. The Holiday Family Adoption Program, a Spencer-area holiday staple, allows generous area families, businesses and service groups to share in the holiday spirit and bounty...

Mayor proclaims Family Day (09/17/08)
Spencer Mayor Reynold Peterson was on hand to proclaim Monday, Sept. 22, as Family Day. The occasion was created to encourage families to have dinner with their children on the fourth Monday of each September. Positively Spencer Youth members Wes Simpson, Josie Hough, Amy Simpson and Pat McGee were on hand to emphasize the correlation between frequent family dinners and reduced risk for teen substance abuse...

Swiss educator returns to Spencer (09/12/08)
A former German teacher visited with Spencer High School (SHS) students this week, minimizing the distance between northwest Iowa and Switzerland. Michele (Keller) Rogger, a former flight attendant and teacher, is a stay-at-home mother today to her 4-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter. ...

Arraignment set in vehicular homicide case (08/22/08)
A Spencer man will have a chance to respond to amended charges for his possible role in a traffic fatality earlier this summer. James Owen Prather faces a charges of vehicular homicide, serious injury by vehicle and leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death. The vehicular homicide charge is a Class B felony and carries a penalty no more than 25 years in prison...

Extra enforcement planned for Labor Day (08/22/08)
Area law enforcement agencies are once again stepping up patrols in advance of the Labor Day holiday weekend. Chief Deputy Duane Bates of the Clay County Sheriff's Office is coordinating the year's fifth and final wave of sTEP, the special traffic enforcement program. The enforcement effort is being held in conjunction with "Over the Limit. Under Arrest," a national drunk driving awareness campaign...

'Safe Routes to School' study underway (08/22/08)
Public reaction to recommendations to occur Sept. 17-18

Kardell sisters donate to Locks of Love (08/06/08)
Sisters Liz and Gabby Kardell both donated to Locks of Love, a non-profit organization that provides hairpieces to financially-disadvantaged children suffering from long-term medical hair loss, Tuesday afternoon. The pair, who mark Bruce and Gwen Kardell of Spencer's eldest and youngest of five children, trusted Sam Madison of Design Masters to shear them as their mother, grandmother Shirley Wheeler and friend Jake Kluver watched...

PSY among 24 community programs to receive federal drug free funds (07/26/08)
By Randy M. Cauthron Managing Editor Senator Chuck Grassley announced Thursday that the Office of National Drug Control Policy has awarded $2,208,689 in Drug Free Communities Support Program continuation grants to 24 Iowa communities. Among those communities, Spencer's Positively Spencer Youth group was awarded the top funding amount of $100,000...

Representative daycare (07/10/08)
State Rep. Mike May (R-Spirit Lake) accepted the invitation of local childcare provider Judy Elliott to attend her special deep sea daycare event at her home which also doubles as Elliott's Home Family Child Care. May, with the assistance of Elliott (above), had the opportunity to sit down and be involved in a sing-a-long with the children present, sharing a story accompanied by music about the creatures in the water. ...

GriefShare: Returning program assists those dealing with loss of loved one (05/30/08)
It's an undeniable fact - it hurts to lose a loved one. A continuing program in Okoboji is hoping to help those struggling find support, strength and peace. GriefShare, a biblically based support group seminar, is returning to the Lakes area this summer...

Student volunteers recognized (05/30/08)
Spencer Middle School students who participated in the RSVP Student Service Project were recently recognized for their volunteer contributions to the community. Forty seventh and eighth graders contributed over 500 hours to non-profit organizations and public agencies during out-of-school time over the past school year...

First Congregational Church to donate playhouse (05/23/08)
Currently on the grounds of First Congregational Church of Spencer sits a log-cabin playhouse, located near the entrance to the sanctuary. At the conclusion of the 10:30 a.m. worship service on Sunday, May 25, the entire congregation will gather around the house for a prayer of dedication as the playhouse is destined to become a fixture in the backyard of the Clay county CAASA (Center Against Abuse and Sexual Assault) shelter...

Accused murderers request bond reduction (05/20/08)
Three men accused of a Milford murder this spring await a judges' decision on bond reduction after appearing before Dickinson County Court Monday morning. John Allen Swan, 30, of Crossett, Ark.; Scott Thomas Adair, 29, of Crossett, Ark.; and Michael James Friedrichs, 29, of Forest City are being held in the Dickinson County Jail on $750,000 bond...

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