Strip club welcomes church; no secret VA wait list; utility manager electrocuted

EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. (AP) — The leader of a group operating in South Africa that targeted and stole from hundreds of women across the United States has pleaded guilty to fraud charges in an Illinois federal court.

The U.S. Justice Department announced Thursday that 32-year-old Olayinka Ilumsa Sunmola of Nigeria pleaded guilty to fraud and interstate extortion in East St. Louis.

Sunmola, who was indicted in 2013, was arrested in 2014 by Scotland Yard as he was boarding a flight from London to South Africa.

Prosecutors say as part of the scheme, Sunmola created bogus online profiles in which he claimed to be an American citizen or a former U.S. soldier and wooed women with flowers, stuffed animals and candy.

Prosecutors say after he gained the women's trust, Sunmola began to claim a series of phony, emergencies for which he needed cash.

Sunmola's sentencing is scheduled for June 27.

SAUK RAPIDS, Minn. (AP) — Ida Sass efficiently guided her class of 10 students through exercise after exercise for almost 25 minutes. Stretches, wrist rolls, scissor kicks, repeat.

Sass rarely misses her class, which she leads twice a week. Her attendance record is even more impressive considering that in December, Sass celebrated her 100th birthday.

Sass would likely match no one's expectations of what a 100-year-old woman looks like, the St. Cloud Times (http://on.sctimes.com/1QkdDBf ) reported. Nationwide, centenarians are growing in numbers but are still a relatively small group compared with the rest of the population.

Sass lives by herself at Good Shepherd Court Apartments in Sauk Rapids. She keeps a full book of appointments. With the exception of a relatively new pacemaker, Sass has never had surgery and is in good health.

There are three other 100-year-old residents in the Good Shepherd system, including one who will turn 107 this year, said Jodi Speicher, vice president of sales and marketing. Speicher, who calls Sass the Energizer Bunny, said Sass did 104 consecutive exercise sessions without being absent.

Speicher once asked her what the secret to her longevity is. Vitamins, Sass told her.

"So I started taking vitamins right away," Speicher said. "I want to be just like her."

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Sass credits her positive attitude for keeping her in good health. She remembers when her now-late husband was sick, and she cried in her car because she was overwhelmed.

"I finally said, 'Lord, you take over.' And a calm came over me. I said, 'I'll accept anything you will.' I've been that way ever since," she said.

Her exercise classes sometimes draw as many as 14 participants. Sass said she considered quitting leading them when she turned 100, but the people who come inspire her to keep going.

"I want to go anyway. I can kick as high as they can," she said.

Her participants like her leading the class and say she's friendly.

"We've had a few subs, but nothing takes her place," said LaVern Reischl, 83.

Sass' daughter Joanne Froelke, who lives in St. Augusta, noted that her mother has the 30 or so routines memorized; there's no cheat sheet.

Does she ever tell Sass to slow down? "You don't tell my mother anything," Froelke said. "If she has her mind made up, she will do it."

Sass' son, Loren Sass of Beloit, Wisconsin, agrees.

"She has that walker and we take her to the grocery store and by golly you better try to keep up with her," he said.

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Sass' life story so far is wide ranging. She went from growing up near Arapahoe, Nebraska, to a fun-filled life in St. Louis to a pioneer lifestyle in Canada back to the States, and eventually to Good Shepherd.

With the help of her oldest son, Loren, she has her life story typed up, and it fits on almost three pages. But talk to Sass for even a minute and you'll realize what a vivid memory she has.

"She remembers people from years ago," Loren Sass said. "There's never an argument that we can win about what we had for Christmas dinner in 1982. She just cares about people. She has all her life."

Sass was born Dec. 31, 1915. Her first memory is from 1918 when she was 3, when she got vaccinated for the Spanish flu. She and her older brother heard the county nurse was coming and promptly hid under their parents' bed to avoid a shot.

Then came the rough years, the Depression and the Dust Bowl. "That black wall of dirt — I was in it. It was 12 noon and it was pitch black," Sass said. "You had to clean the farmhouse three times a day to exist."

What does she remember about the Depression? "Everything. I lived through it. Those were horrible years," she said. "But then again, everybody was poor at that time."

Sass' first job was taking care of four children for $3 a week while their mother was in the hospital. But soon brighter things beckoned: Her older brother had become a teacher in St. Louis and urged Sass to move there. She moved to St. Louis when she was 23.

"I packed my suitcase and got on the train by myself," she said. "Traveled all the way to St. Louis and didn't know a soul. I was brave."

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Sass loved the bustle of St. Louis and met the man she wanted to spend her life with: She married a Lutheran minister, the Rev. Frank Sass from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. He was tall, with golden blond hair and blue eyes, Sass said.

They left St. Louis for a town of 70 residents in Saskatchewan, and lived without electricity and running water for seven years. Sass did laundry using a washboard. She said she was happy, though.

"I was so in love, I didn't care where I went," Sass said.

The Sasses lost their first child, a girl, just hours after the baby was born in 1945; Sass had birth complications. The family moved around Canada and eventually ended up having four children. Massive snowstorms around the time Loren arrived forced the Sasses to travel by train for 40 miles, and then have a farmer with a horse-drawn open sleigh take them home, according to her written history. Three more children, a girl and two sons, followed, with Sass giving birth to the last one at age 42.

The family eventually moved back to the States, first to Arcadia, Iowa, then Pine City, Minnesota. At age 50, Sass enrolled at the local vocational/technical college; her daughter graduated from high school the same spring she did. "It gave you a lift to be able to go to school," she said. Was it difficult going back to school when she was older? "A lot of us were older," she said. "I was young at that time. Age 50 — that's young."

Moves to Vergas and Perham later came for the Sasses. After years of health issues, Frank Sass died, and Ida Sass came to Good Shepherd in 2003.

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Sass says she loves living at Good Shepherd. She attends as many activities as she can; staying busy is important to her.

She received a computer for Christmas, and she uses email. Loren Sass is hooked up to her computer, too, so he can help her remotely if she gets confused. She's not going to venture on the Internet, though.

Sass, who has nine grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren, had five birthday parties to mark the 100-year milestone. That she would be so celebrated isn't a surprise to her loved ones.

"She's been a servant her whole life, very involved in helping others," Froelke said.

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Information from: St. Cloud Times, http://www.sctimes.com

This is an AP Member Exchange shared by the St. Cloud Times

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — It's not legal, but Doug Klein says he hasn't put front license plates on his cars in 30 years. He's willing to risk getting a ticket to keep it that way.

Klein is the owner of American Dream Machines in downtown Des Moines, a dealership with an inventory that includes such classic cars as a gleaming red 1957 Cadillac Eldorado convertible and a sleek black 1995 Ferrari 348 Spider.

"I don't see the logic of someone spending $50,000 to $100,000 for a beautiful car, and then you have to slap a license plate on the front," Klein said.

The Des Moines Register (http://dmreg.co/1LzsWtB ) reports that the Iowa House is considering House File 540, which would require only a rear license plate on vehicles. The Iowa Department of Transportation says the change would save more than $500,000 annually.

But Iowa law enforcement officials have pushed back against the bill, raising concerns that the absence of a front license plate can hinder police work.

State Rep. Josh Byrnes, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, said he's received more emails in support of getting rid of one license plate than he did from both sides last year when the Legislature raised the gas tax by 10 cents a gallon.

"People want this thing gone," Byrnes said.

Nationwide, 19 states do not require a front license plate.

But law enforcement officers say having front and rear license plates is important for criminal investigations, both for tracking vehicles and surveillance camera recordings. Law officers also say having two plates on a car is important when they issue Amber Alerts to seek public cooperation when a child has been abducted and is in danger.

"Not having that front plate cuts the chances of seeing the suspect's license plates in half. We think it would be a step backward for public safety," said Maj. John Godar of the Linn County Sheriff's Office, who is also president of the Iowa State Sheriffs & Deputies Association.

The Iowa DOT hasn't taken a position on the one-plate debate. But eliminating the front license plate would prevent people from avoiding detection of unregistered vehicles by splitting plate pairs on two vehicles, said Mark Lowe, director of the DOT's Motor Vehicle Division. Although if pairs are split, only one plate would have a registration tag.

The Iowa Automobile Dealers Association officially supports the one-plate legislation, in part because new car bumpers don't have holes drilled to install license plate brackets. Sales representatives need to inform new car buyers that Iowa law requires a front license plate and then get permission to install it.

"For a lot of people, the front of a car typically looks much cleaner, much better, without a front license plate," said Jim Usgaard, general manager of Willis Auto Campus in Clive, which sells seven brands of new vehicles and all types of pre-owned cars.

In addition, many new vehicles are designed with bumpers that cause low-hanging license plates to strike curbs, damaging the plates, said Bruce Anderson, president of the Iowa Automobile Dealers Association. He noted Iowa law already permits car dealers to demonstrate vehicles with a single dealer plate, and cars from states with one-plate laws can operate legally in Iowa.

But there's not much sympathy for those one-plate arguments from legislators with backgrounds in law enforcement.

State Rep. Clel Baudler, who is a retired state trooper, recalled how he would closely inspect vehicles without a front plate when they would pull into an interstate highway rest area.

"If there are a bunch of bugs on the back plate, the car is probably stolen, because the plate was taken off the front of a vehicle," he said.

State Sen. Kevin Kinney, a retired investigator for the Johnson County Sheriff's Office, said he's found that front plates often are more visible to surveillance cameras than rear plates, which frequently are mounted on the back of the car's trunk lid.

In response to critics, Byrnes said he's hoping to forge a compromise that would exempt owners of cars and trucks at least 25 years old from needing to install two license plates. Another idea is to allow people with high-priced cars to pay an extra fee, perhaps $100, for the right to have just one license plate.

"If you can afford an expensive car, you could afford the fee," Byrnes said. "I have talked with people who own Corvettes or whatever and asked, 'Would you pay for this?' They have said, 'Absolutely.' So I think we are making some headway."

But Baudler, who chairs the House Public Safety Committee, said while he's OK with allowing one plate for vintage cars, he doesn't like the idea of buyouts for well-heeled owners of newer vehicles.

"I understand that people don't want to display a front plate on their Corvette, but it's not good policy," Baudler said.

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Information from: The Des Moines Register, http://www.desmoinesregister.com

An AP Member Exchange shared by The Des Moines Register

BELOIT, Wis. (AP) — One budding author at Aldrich Intermediate School has written so many novels, she has to lug them around in a Dora the Explorer suitcase.

Fourth-grader Amari Morton not only fills spiral notebooks faster than her parents can buy them, but skipped a grade and is reading at the sixth grade level.

"She's very thoughtful in her execution of dialogue, character interaction and story development," said her teacher Tim Vedra. "Her future is bright. She's very smart, works hard and is able to articulate well. She's awesome."

Amari's parents, Sean and Audrey Morton of Beloit, credit her success, in part, to teaching her to read at 2 years old through the "Your Baby Can Read" program. Although the program's creator had to settle charges with the Federal Trade Commission for false advertising, her parents are still believers, the Beloit Daily News (http://bit.ly/1QmKGFd ) reported.

"She's at the top of her class now, and she still has that desire to read. We don't have to make her go read, we'll find her reading," said her dad, Sean, a machine operator at Frito-Lay.

Whether her daughter learned from the program may be unclear, but her mother's determination is an inspiration to all who know her.

Audrey started holding up sight-word flash cards to Amari when she was 2-years-old. Within weeks, Amari could distinguish words such as tiger or elephant. Audrey had already been teaching her son Armani Lewis, now 20-years-old, for years.

"You are not supposed to baby talk a baby. I would use words with him," Audrey said.

Audrey, a stay-at-home mom who worked in cosmetology, said she was always an average student.

Sean said reading is the basic key to learning or doing anything. Audrey said she wished she had applied herself more and went to college to pursue her interests in writing and art. She decided she wanted more for her kids and left no stone unturned in advancing their education.

After dutifully going over about 20 books and DVDS with the "Baby Can Read" program, she got Amari making picture books with stories and photos at age 3.

"You know how kids ask for toys? Well Amari asked for notebooks," added father Sean.

Pretty soon Amari would tell stories on camera.

"Ever since she was knee high to a duck she would start recording videos of her stories," Audrey noted.

Everyone who knew the little girl would be forced to sit down and listen to her many tales.

"When we would look for her, she'd be in her room reading and writing her books," dad Sean said.

Amari wrote about ants escaping the clutches of humans, a bald 20-year-old woman called "TTAT" and news reports.

When she was in 4K her mother did a home school program with her which she finished in about a month. She eventually skipped kindergarten and went right to first grade at Robinson Elementary School.

Robinson Principal Sam Carter can still recall Amari's mother at Robinson, concerned about enrolling Amari after so much success with home schooling. Once on board, Audrey was always very involved in Amari's education and supportive of the school.

Audrey said she would ask to sit in on classes just to see what was going on and to ensure her daughter was learning at the right level.

Carter said it was no surprise Amari is doing so well.

"I always knew she would be successful," Carter said.

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Information from: Beloit Daily News, http://www.beloitdailynews.com

This is an AP Member Exchange shared by the Beloit Daily News

CHICAGO (AP) — An internal watchdog for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs found patients faced delays accessing care at a suburban Chicago veterans' hospital, but its report uncovered no evidence supporting a whistleblower's claim of a scheme to hide the long wait times.

The VA's Office of Inspector General is releasing reports on its investigations at dozens of veterans' facilities across the country over the next few months after pressure from members of Congress to improve transparency. Some of the other reports detail falsified records covering up the long waits. Intentional misconduct was substantiated in 51 of 77 completed investigations.

The report on the Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital, just west of Chicago, was released Thursday, though it was completed in January 2015.

It uncovered no evidence to support the whistleblower's claims that secret patient wait lists were used to hide long waits for treatment so supervisors would get bonuses.

It did find that appointment schedulers, responding to direction from supervisors, made changes in a computer system that reduced the appearance of patient wait times. But it did not determine that data was manipulated intentionally to make the numbers look better.

Investigators' interviews with employees revealed uncertainty about how appointment data was supposed to be logged in "antiquated confusing scheduling software." As a result, some of the data changes appeared meant to fix genuine clerical errors, the report said.

Some employees told investigators that separate spreadsheets with appointment data had to be kept because the official software was so limiting, but they were not secret lists, as alleged.

In a statement Friday, Hines said it has worked to correct scheduling problems through training and regular audits.

"Our most important mission is to provide the high quality health care and benefits veterans have earned and deserve," said Jane Moen, an assistant to the Hines director.

U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk has been especially critical of the Hines hospital and the VA in general. He rejected the report's findings, citing a review by the U.S. Office of Special Counsel that called the investigation inadequate.

Kirk, who is chairman of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees funding for the VA, first brought attention to Hines during a scandal over veterans' health care that emerged nearly two years ago after complaints that as many as 40 patients died while awaiting care at a VA hospital in Phoenix.

"At the hearing I held last year, whistleblowers from Hines, Phoenix and Louisiana said nothing had changed — the culture of corruption still thrives at their hospitals and veterans wait months and years for appointments, often dying as they wait," Kirk said in a statement Friday.

Kirk also sent a letter to Deputy Inspector General Linda Halliday expressing concern at how the investigation was handled and demanding the release of all investigation documents and supporting material.

The investigation at Hines included interviews with staff and a review of 245,000 emails. None of the emails pointed to an intentional falsification of wait time data.

"To the contrary, multiple emails ... clearly show the acknowledgement of, and intolerance to, 'gaming' strategies and intentional falsification of wait time data," the report said.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indianapolis Public Schools employees face possible discipline for waiting six days to report allegations that a counselor was having sex with a student, the district's superintendent said Friday.

Any employee who knew about the allegations against Shana Taylor and did not report them will be disciplined, Superintendent Lewis Ferebee said during a news conference.

However, IPS spokeswoman Kristin Cutler told The Indianapolis Star that Ferebee himself learned of the allegations on Feb. 17, but also did not report them to the Indiana Department of Child Services. The allegations were reported six days later, on Feb. 23.

"I was made aware of the initial reporting, and it was shared with me that we were following our protocols and procedures," Ferebee said. "It wasn't until we had the employee in and they were being interviewed by a human resources staff member that it was discovered that (the reporting) was not done."

The Star reports Indiana law requires certain school officials to immediately report instances of suspected child abuse at their institutions to DCS or police.

An internal investigation found several staff members admitted they knew they were required to report the incident to DCS, but failed to do so, Ferebee said. The staff assumed a report had been made without confirming that information, he said.

Taylor, 37, was charged Wednesday with nine felony counts of child seduction, one felony count of dissemination of matter harmful to minors and one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

She is being held on a $100,000 bond. It was not clear whether she has an attorney who might comment on her behalf.

Taylor, a guidance counselor at Longfellow Alternative school, is accused of frequently engaging in sex acts with a student in her office, his home, her apartment and her car. The student, 16 at the time of the first encounter, told police he and Taylor first had sex in his home while she was on break from work. The student told investigators he and Taylor smoked marijuana that day.

The investigation began when the student's mother confronted an assistant principal with sexually explicit pictures and texts. The assistant principal sent the information and evidence to IPS headquarters. Police also have learned of a second victim.

The IPS board fired Taylor on Friday.

WAUKESHA, Wis. (AP) — Police in Waukesha say at least 30 students between the ages of 10 and 15 are being investigated for possible sexting.

Police say the students used a variety of social media applications to trade nude photographs and videos of themselves and each other online. Some of the apps look like calculators until they are opened up.

Capt. Dan Baumann tells the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (http://bit.ly/21L78CG ) that the students traded the images like baseball cards.

The Waukesha School District sent a letter to parents, urging them to watch what their children are doing online.

Baumann says criminal charges are possible, but at this point he sees all the students as victims. Authorities are investigating whether any adults were involved or whether any of the children were coerced.

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Information from: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, http://www.jsonline.com

By TAYA FLORES

Journal & Courier

LAFAYETTE, Ind. (AP) — Last summer, after praying about a building his church had pegged as a possible new home, Neal Porter talked to his two teenage children about the neighboring establishment — Filly's Gentlemen's Club and adult gift shop.

He told them, "We have no right to judge them because they are just like us and we hope they wouldn't judge us," he said.

Porter is a member of Lafayette Community Church, which is no stranger to non-traditional venues for worship. The nearly 9-year-old congregation has held services in a strip mall on Lafayette's south side for five years.

Since then, however, the 80 typical Sunday attendants has nearly tripled to 230 congregants, forcing leadership to once again look for a new space. After two years of searching, the church found its home in a non-residential, industrial part of Concord Road, next door to Filly's Gentlemen's Club and adult gift shop.

Although members and leaders had initial concerns, the church after researching, praying and discussing concerns last summer came to the conclusion that this was the best option, said lead pastor Jeff Mikels.

"The price is what lead us there initially," he said "But it was after the summer of talking and praying with people that we realized this was a great opportunity for us. ... We are trying to help people know that God loves them, and this location gives us the opportunity to do that."

The adult entertainment business is sandwiched between the soon-to-open church and Toys R Us in an industrial part of the city that is home to offices, retail spaces and entertainment venues but few residences. It's encased by a privacy fence on both sides and a façade that reveals little about the nature of the business.

The unconventional pairing of these establishments underscores a need for civility, privacy and mutual respect, according to church member and leaders and Filly's patrons and owners.

Members on both sides of the privacy fence say they are optimistic about the proximity and do not believe that either will interfere in each other's business as long as they respect boundaries.

Filly's patron Kira Sherlock of West Lafayette said as long as church members do not come Filly's to proselytize, it will not be a problem.

"Everybody should just mind their own business," said Sherlock. "They have a job to do over there, and (Filly's) has a job to do over here."

Members of the church said they had no plans to proselytize patrons.

"You're not going to see us standing in front of their place with picket signs," Porter said.

Filly's patron Mekeisha Roberts of Lafayette said problems should not arise as long as the club keeps disturbances to a minimum.

"I feel like as long as the club run this business the correct way, without letting it get overboard, then whatever happens at the club shouldn't reflect what happens at the church," she said.

Some church members initially had concerns about patrons exiting Filly's at night.

They worried about the safety of church women as they exited the building.

"You have drunk, horny men coming out of there," said member Rob Briles. "That was one major concern of mine."

Ed Gobel, co-owns Filly's with his daughter, Tona Biddle.

They said they haven't had any major complaints from drivers or parents shopping at Toys R Us and they make sure to take care of their property and keep the adult nature of the business private.

"One of the best things for us is the privacy fence between the two," Biddle said.

Gobel said if patrons are intoxicated, his staff will call them a cab.

He also doesn't believe the church will negatively impact his business, he said.

"Even though we have differences of opinion, we respect each other," he said. "We respect each other's views."

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Source: (Lafayette) Journal & Courier, http://on.jconline.com/1TSxii9

This is an AP-Indiana Exchange story offered by the (Lafayette) Journal & Courier.

PINEVILLE, Mo. (AP) — A southwest Missouri man has pleaded guilty to going onto other people's land without permission to cut down walnut trees.

Forty-year-old John Ellis, of rural Goodman, entered the plea Wednesday to two felony counts of theft and two felony counts of property damage as part of a plea agreement. He was given a suspended sentence and five years of probation.

The Joplin Globe reports (http://bit.ly/1YbW8IZ ) Ellis helped a couple and their two sons enter property in rural McDonald County to cut down the trees and harvest the logs.

They took down a total of 17 trees, with a total estimated value of about $8,500.

The four other defendants are charged with the same offenses and have hearings set for April 12.

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Information from: The Joplin (Mo.) Globe, http://www.joplinglobe.com

NORA SPRINGS, Iowa (AP) — The Nora Springs City Council has passed proposed zoning amendments involving adult-oriented businesses.

The Globe Gazette (http://bit.ly/24GefLL ) reports that the amendments passed in a 4-0 vote Thursday evening will restrict sexually oriented businesses from operating within 300 feet of each other or from bus stops, churches, City Hall, day cares and schools.

The city's Planning and Zoning Commission recommended amending the zoning ordinance after the opening of Pole Barn Theater nearly two weeks ago. The downtown exotic dance club is near City Hall and two churches.

Owner Dale Peterson said late last week that his business wouldn't be affected by the ordinance because he doesn't consider it an adult-oriented business.

"I'm not how they categorize it as adult entertainment; I'm a theater of performing arts," Peterson said. "I'm in a different category."

Councilman Brian Hanft said that the business could draw crime to the area.

"I respect everybody's constitutional rights," Hanft said. "But with these sexually oriented businesses, it's very clear that the science points out that there's a lot of secondary effects."

About 80 people attended the City Council meeting. One Nora Springs resident asked why City Council didn't take action when the owner of the Pole Barn Theater opened a similar business in Corwith.

"Because we were probably thinking this would never happen to us," Mayor George Andersen said.

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Information from: Globe Gazette, http://www.globegazette.com/

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — A judge in western Michigan who has performed marriages for hundreds of couples is getting married to her same-sex partner of 27 years.

Kent County District Court Judge Sara Smolenski tells The Grand Rapids Press it's "so powerful to join two people together that love each other" and she says she "never thought in my lifetime I'd see this." She and Linda Burpee plan to marry this weekend.

Michigan voters in 2004 backed a gay marriage ban. Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court said same-sex couples have a right to marry.

The couple could have married earlier in another state, but Smolenski says they wanted to be married in Michigan because it's their home. WOOD-TV reports about 200 family and friends are invited. Smolenski says their support has been "overwhelming."

PIERCE, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say the Pierce utilities manager has died after touching a live electrical line.

A news release sent Friday by the Pierce County attorney's office says 59-year-old Dave Hoogestraat (HOO'-geh-strat) was killed Thursday afternoon while helping to replace a damaged utility pole in Pierce.

The release says the investigation so far shows that Hoogestraat apparently touched the line while working in the bucket of a boom truck.

Pierce is a city of about 1,750 people and is the seat of Pierce County in northeast Nebraska.

CORALVILLE, Iowa (AP) — A judge has denied a murder defendant's request for data from the iPhone of a mall shooting victim in Coralville, saying Story County can't access the information.

The Iowa City Press-Citizen (http://icp-c.com/24GhKSc ) reports that Alexander Kozak, 22, is charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Andrea Farrington, 20, at Coral Ridge Mall on June 12.

Kozak's attorney Alfredo Parrish filed a motion Feb. 17 to retrieve evidence from the iPhone, including emails and text messages Farrington and Kozak allegedly exchanged.

Sixth Judicial District Judge Christopher Bruns denied the motion Wednesday. Bruns said a forensic data analyst, data acquisition software and officials at the Department of Narcotics Enforcement were unsuccessful in their attempts to unlock the phone. He also said friends and family don't know the password, which Farrington changed just before her death.

Bruns noted that the topic of accessing iPhone data has been covered in the news as Apple has declined to aid the FBI with special software in order to access the phone of a suspect in December's mass shooting in San Bernardino, California.

Court documents say Kozak has raised a diminished responsibility defense in the case, citing a mental defect at the time of the crime. His defense has already enlisted an expert for a separate evaluation in October

Prosecutors requested a psychological evaluation for Kozak on March 1 at the Iowa Medical and Classification Center later this month.

Bruns granted the motion Thursday, but expressed concern that the process could delay the trial, which is scheduled to begin April 12. Bruns said Kozak's defense will need time to respond to the prosecution's evaluation before the trial.

Kozak is being held in Muscatine County jail on a $10 million bond.

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Information from: Iowa City Press-Citizen, http://www.press-citizen.com/

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Every Republican primary voter in Ohio will have two opportunities to vote for president, in a ballot twist that only escalates the potential confusion caused by the party's large and fractious field of candidates.

GOP ballots for the March 15 primary feature two boxes for president: one for designating an at-large presidential delegate and one for designating a district delegate. It's a carry-over from a time when Ohio's Republican vote was divided proportionally, rather than in the winner-take-all fashion being used in 2016.

The two boxes raise obvious questions: Do voters get two votes? Can conflicted voters split their vote, or do votes for two candidates cancel each other out? If only one of the two boxes is filled in, does the person's vote still count?

Ohio never changed a requirement that both boxes be listed, and the secretary of state's office says both will also tallied. But the Ohio Republican Party says only one will count.

"Because there are two pathways to selecting delegates to represent Ohio at the convention, voters must vote twice — once for the congressional district delegate and once for delegate at-large," said party spokeswoman Brittany Warner. "The votes that will be counted to determine the results are the delegates at-large."

The ballot presentation has angered the American Policy Roundtable, a conservative policy group that works in the area of voter outreach and participation.

"Why give people two options for president if one doesn't count? I don't get it," said Rob Walgate, the group's vice president. "Beyond that, people are already voting in Ohio. When were they planning to tell people? Do the candidates even know about this? There are a lot of unanswered questions."

Further complicating matters, Republican ballots in Ohio still list 11 at-large presidential candidates and up to 10 district-level candidates. Yet only four — billionaire Donald Trump, Sens. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, and Gov. John Kasich — remain in the race.

By contrast, Democratic primary ballots in Ohio feature just one box, with three candidates.

Josh Eck, a spokesman for Secretary of State Jon Husted, said signs indicating the names of withdrawn candidates are prominently displayed at polling places.

But that attempt at clearing the confusion also has a caveat: Only candidates who withdrew before the state's Feb. 5 deadline set to accommodate early voting that's already underway will be posted. So that's just one guy, Eck said: Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul. Six others appearing in the at-large voting square aren't viable choices.

Carrie Davis, executive director of the Ohio League of Women Voters, said having two delegate choices in Ohio primaries isn't new. But she said it adds a further obstacle to a primary season that's already perplexing to many voters.

"It's not that the ballot is different. It's just that this year we have such a contested primary, and a lot more candidates running, and a lot more dropping out, that people are paying a lot more attention to it," Davis said. "Really, the best advice that we can give to voters is: Read your ballot carefully."

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Follow Julie Carr Smyth at http://www.twitter.com/jcarrsmyth .

Some of her recent work can be found at: http://bigstory.ap.org/content/julie-carr-smyth.

MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. (AP) — A Macomb County sheriff's officer who handles dogs isn't liable for a dog bite, even if the victim was bitten while he and Zeke were at a cottage 150 miles away.

The Michigan appeals court this week overturned a decision and said Kevin Szlaga has governmental immunity in the lawsuit.

Szlaga took care of Zeke when they were working or off duty. In June 2013, they were at a cottage in Clare County when Gail Foster entered and was bitten by Zeke.

In a 2-1 decision, the court says Szlaga is immune to a tort claim because he was acting in the course of his public employment. In a seven-page dissent, Judge Deborah Servitto disagreed, saying there were many unanswered questions about the officer's relationship with Zeke.

By JIM COLLAR

Post-Crescent Media

APPLETON, Wis. (AP) — A longer-than-expected journey will soon result in one of the grandest musical instruments to have a home in the Fox Valley.

It speaks in metaphor about the church it'll serve each Sunday morning — one unit made stronger by its many components.

Members of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in Appleton say their seven-year project toward a renewed and expanded pipe organ has been an effort of generosity and one driven by faith. It'll be a new instrument, but one made from pieces of several that had rich histories of their own.

It's a blend of the old and the new and derives its energy from many voices, Post-Crescent Media (http://post.cr/212qw8s ) reported.

"There's diversity," said Appleton native John Schwandt, a consultant on the project and a former Zion congregant. "That diversity is a strength, not a weakness."

Anticipation is growing at Zion as they near completion of a project far bigger than imagined when the church community took its first steps in 2009. Its long-awaited organ will be finished in the next few months and members expect it'll be dedicated this summer. It's a gargantuan instrument. The housing for its 3,000 pipes is more than 18 feet wide. Those pipes range from 9 inches in length to 18 feet tall. It'll come in at about 27,000 pounds.

This week brought major strides.

On Tuesday, workers installed the two striking mechanisms for the harp, a percussion component that holds similarity to the xylophone or marimba. The restored — and still ever delicate — mechanisms were originally crafted in 1934 and have hammers that will strike tuned metal pieces when activated at the console.

"This will be the first of its sound in Appleton," said Stephen Russell, owner of Russell and Company Pipe Organ Builders in Chester, Vermont.

Zion's original organ of 1,200 pipes had been in the church — one listed in the National Register of Historic Places — since its 1903 dedication.

Time took its toll and began to erode its sound and function. Zion's music team relied on duct tape in instances to cover weak spots and provide the wind power necessary to fuel the majesty of their hymns.

The modern incarnation isn't one organ, but several.

The church purchased a 1931 Moller organ from the First Baptist Church in Elmira, N.Y. Its restored console, with woodwork matching that of the Zion sanctuary, includes four keyboards — one more than Zion's prior instrument.

Zion's organ will include pipes from a variety of builders including its originals, some new and many from the Moller. The amalgamation will give Zion a rich variety of sounds and lower and mid-range frequencies it didn't have before.

The finished project will cost about $650,000, and about $500,000 of that has been raised.

A new organ of its size and scope would cost up to $1.4 million. Church members, though, enjoy that its pieces come with history.

"It was almost like it was meant to be," said Jim Schley, co-chair of the church's organ committee. "We call it divine intervention."

The congregation went two years without an organ and relied on a small piano to provide backing to their songs of praise.

Members have since gotten a feel for the still-growing instrument as the project progressed with hymns chosen to demonstrate each new addition.

Gwen Schwandt, John's mother and co-chair of the committee, can't wait to hear the finished version.

"It's going to be a very emotional experience," she said. "The music from a pipe organ just swells your heart."

It's an instrument that isn't just heard but felt in the body and the spirit.

"It's exciting," Russell said. "It's soothing and calming; terrifying. It can encompass all of the human emotions."

The completed organ will have 50 ranks, or sets of pipes corresponding to different sounds. Installers will have 42 in place after this week.

"It isn't going to be the largest in the area, but it'll be one of the largest," Schley said.

It'll restore aural beauty to a structure of physical beauty.

The organ, though, will also be a sight to behold.

The church commissioned woodworker Dwayne Sultzbaugh of Wautoma to create a hand-carved façade for the organ to match its altar, and installation is expected by June.

The church plans to spread its joy and open its doors for concerts and recitals.

John Schwandt was long ago taken by the pipe organ, and today is a professor and director for the American Organ Institute at the University of Oklahoma.

He views the installation — and all the effort it's taken — as a turning point in church history.

"This is really going to be a gift for the entire community, Schwandt said. "There are a lot of fine organs in the Fox Valley, but none like this."

His mother said it's a project that put teachings to practice.

"It's a statement of faith," she said. "We couldn't do this without the support of the people of our congregation and of our community."

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Information from: Post-Crescent Media, http://www.postcrescent.com

This is an AP Member Exchange shared by Post-Crescent Media

By PETER SALTER

Lincoln Journal Star

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — They spent weeks last summer watching a neighbor's garage lose its paint.

It was just falling off, Marshall Ford said, like it was shedding its coat. But he and his wife, Kristin, knew the neighbor couldn't afford to fix it.

"So I approached the homeowner and said, 'Hey, can we help you with this?'"

And then they spent even more weeks scraping and chipping and repainting their neighbor's garage.

At some point, Ford thought about how quickly they could finish that garage with a team of volunteers. And what if there were many teams of volunteers spreading out across the city? How many homes could they paint? How many needs could they fill?

Kind of like the old Lincoln Paint-a-Thon, which brightened 783 homes over 21 years. Which drained nearly 11,000 cans of paint and drew nearly 23,000 volunteers before drying up quietly in 2012. Which had meant so much to Ford when he helped out that he had often thought about bringing it back.

As he worked on the neighbor's garage, he decided: Now.

"That was my call to action," he said.

He's not starting this from scratch. The 33-year-old has an established brand -- he calls it name equity -- in the Lincoln Paint-a-Thon. It's recognized and trusted by volunteers and donors.

More than that, though, he has help from the couple who started it a quarter-century ago.

The Lincoln Journal Star (http://bit.ly/21IpQaJ ) reports that in 1991, Tom and Sheila Pettigrew raised enough money and drafted enough volunteers to paint about 10 houses. They painted more the next summer, and even more the next. At its peak, the Paint-a-Thon was helping 40 homeowners a year, mostly seniors, mostly women.

But then the important numbers started to decline. They still had plenty of homeowners who wanted help, but only enough volunteers and donations to paint 19 homes in 2012, when they decided to end the effort.

"There came a time when we just said, 'Darn.' There needs to be financing and there needs to be leadership," Sheila Pettigrew said four years ago.

By then, though, Ford was hooked. He'd bought and painted a big home in the Near South, so he knew what he was doing. He first volunteered in 2009, and then every year until it ended. He thrived on the immediate improvement a coat of paint can make, the happiness of the homeowner.

"There's nothing else like it to me," he said.

They talked about trying to keep it going that first year -- providing that leadership Sheila Pettigrew said it needed -- but he and Kristin had just had a baby, and the timing wasn't right.

Ford donated his time and skills volunteering at other organizations. He was doing important work, needed work, he said, but the sense of satisfaction wasn't the same.

Last fall, he sat down with Tom Pettigrew to plot the resurrection of the Lincoln Paint-a-Thon. The Pettigrews had started similar programs in several Nebraska and Iowa cities, and still lead Omaha's annual event, which has so far painted more than 2,500 homes there.

"He had a sample business plan, and I was able to update that," Ford said. "I didn't have to start over."

They have a website, a Facebook page, a board of directors and their nonprofit -- BuildUP -- is close to getting its tax-exempt status, he said.

They have a date for the return of the Paint-a-Thon: Aug. 20.

But they also still have much to do. Ford is a certified project manager who works at Five Nines, so he's been thinking about what it will take to pull this off. He figures the group will need 15 to 20 volunteers to finish one house in a day. More than that, and they're stepping on each other. Fewer, and they'll need two days.

So he's been stirring up interest wherever he goes, and he's been overwhelmed by the reaction from potential volunteers.

"It's been inspiring, just the number of people. It's been really great."

He's also thinking about money. He estimated a team of volunteers can paint a house for about $500, the cost of supplies and insurance. So far, they've collected enough for one house, but his goal this summer is five homes, and more the next, and more the next.

He's not sure how big it will get. "It depends entirely on the kind of support we get."

The lucky homeowners will choose from a handful of pre-selected paint colors -- whites, blues, grays, browns. That will allow organizers to buy in bulk, and save any remaining paint for next year's event.

"It makes project management so much easier," he said.

With six months to go, they're signing up volunteers and taking donations on their website. The Lincoln Community Foundation will host the contributions until the Paint-a-Thon is officially a tax-exempt nonprofit.

They're also accepting homeowner applications. Among other requirements, applicants must be older than 65 or permanently disabled. They must own their homes, and live in them. They have to fall under certain income restrictions.

And their homes shouldn't be so big they turn the Paint-a-Thon into a marathon.

"If you have a three-story Victorian, that's great. But it's probably not going to get done in a day."

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Information from: Lincoln Journal Star, http://www.journalstar.com

An AP Member Exchange shared by the Lincoln Journal Star