Newton
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Wednesday, July 30, 2014
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Newton, Iowa
Newton man sentenced on child porn charges
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Ty Rushing/Daily News State officials are advising propane consumers to go for a summer fill up to avoid potential winter price hikes. Key Cooperative in Newton offers consumers a chance to purchase bulk quantities of the gas.
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Iowa ag officials advocating summer fill ups for propane users By Ty Rushing Daily News Senior Staff Writer
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Optimae Life Services of Jasper County is inviting the public to its open house from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday at its new location, 1730 First Ave. E. in Newton. The open house gives the public an opportunity to meet the staff, tour the new office and learn about the mental health services it provides. Optimae, which comes from the Latin word optime meaning “the best one can be,” is an organization that offers support and therapy to adults,
Senior staff writer Ty Rushing may be contacted at (641) 792-3121, ext. 6532, or at trushing@ newtondailynews.com.
OPTIMAE See Page 5A
ESQUEDA See Page 5A
Optimae invites public to open house Thursday By Kate Malott Daily News Staff Writer
Newton Daily News
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The Republican Party of Jasper County took to the street Monday night to welcome friends and celebrate the grand opening of its 2014 election headquarters at 207 W. Second St. N. just off the Newton square. A city permit was acquired so the group could provide additional space for the crowd. With nearly 70 in attendance, the group heard from guest speakers Mary Mosiman, Iowa’s state auditor; Sam Clovis, candidate for state treasurer; and former state representative Jeff Kaufmann, the recently elected chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa. Pizza and soft drinks were served as plans for the upcoming election were outlined and discussed. “One of the reasons we wanted to rent this particular space is because we figured we could get the road closed,” said Marshall Critchfield, chairman of the local party. “I’m encouraged by the turnout we had. Most attendees have offered favorable comments regarding the ‘block party’ format so I
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stay with fuel, and not that they have an absolutely fuel tank. So we took what we had and stretched it out among the whole group rather than having some people that were completely full and other people didn’t have propane,” Sheet said. He also said they offered payment plans and lowered the required minimum for delivery. “We had very, very few customers that paid the higher price, and a lot of those (that did) were because they chose not to contract. It worked for them in years past, but they got caught that last winter,” Sheet said. According to a 2009 statistic from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the average propane consuming household in Iowa uses 867 gallons annually. This is almost double the national average of 464 gallons. Sheet also wants to caution Key customers who already have fill plans in place not to panic, because their supplies have already been allocated. He said only customers without prior arrangements will be at risk of paying a higher prices if another extreme cold season takes place. Although no one knows how this upcoming winter will turn out, many are proceeding with caution after last year. Iowa Propane Gas Association Executive Director Deb Groom is advising consumers to reach out to their supplier now if they want to avoid potential price hikes later. “Right now, prices are pretty good. We would like to have the consumers get with their propane supplier and lock in prices and get their summer fill,” Groom said.
Republican headquarters opens in Newton
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Winter is coming, and after last year’s brutal bout with Mother Nature, Iowa agriculture officials are advising consumers to fill up their propane tanks early. Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey is one of those officials who has been at the forefront of encouraging citizens to go for a summer fill on propane tanks. “Last fall and winter the price of propane jumped sharply to more than $5 per gallon in some locations as a number of events severely tested the capacity of the current propane delivery system and infrastructure,” Northey said. “Such a dramatic price increase seems unlikely this year, but it is important for propane users to be prepared.” Newton’s Key Cooperative location is currently selling propane for $1.59 per gallon. Lynn Sheet, the co-op’s energy department manager, said he’s been in the industry for 36 years, and last winter was a perfect storm for a price hike. Sheet said when Kinder Morgan, an American energy conglomerate, decided to trim supply from its Cochin Propane to the Midwest it affected a number of states. Just about 13 percent of Iowa’s propane came from that pipeline. This coupled with record amounts of corn drying caused issues for consumers. “That did cause shortages of propane and then the price just skyrocketed. Fortunately … it didn’t affect 95 percent of our customers,” Sheet said. Key chose to evenly distribute its product to customers to ensure their homes were heated, Sheet said. “The way I view it, our obligation is to make sure the customers stay warm and
A Newton man was sentenced Monday to 14 years in prison on federal child pornography charges. Arleigh J. Esqueda, 35, also was ordered to serve eight years of supervised release after imprisonment and to pay $100 to the Crime Victims Fund, according to United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt. Sentencing took place in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa E s q u e d a pleaded guilty to knowingly possessing child pornography that Esqueda included images of a prepubescent child or children under 12. The sentence imposed on Esqueda was based, in part, on Esqueda’s criminal history and the nature of the offense. According to court documents, Esqueda had more than 10 previous state-court convictions for various crimes, including one prior sex offense when he was 17.
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GOP See Page 5A
Monte Goodyk/Special to the Daily News State Auditor Mary Mosiman speaks in downtown Newton on Monday during the grand opening celebration of the Republican Party of Jasper County headquarters. Also pictured are (from left) Marshall Critchfield, chairman of the Jasper County Republicans; Jeff Kaufmann, chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa; and Sam Clovis, candidate for state treasurer.