News
VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR - March 4th, 2026 11:35 am

In a statement from Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, she said, "The Department of War has identified four Army Reserve soldiers with the 103rd Sustainment Command based in Des Moines, Iowa, who were killed...
BENTON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE - March 4th, 2026 11:27 am

We had the pleasure of welcoming Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird to the Benton County Sheriff’s Office yesterday! During her visit, we provided a tour of our facility and had an open discussion ab...
VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR - March 2nd, 2026 9:05 pm

The first candidate for the June 2, 2026 primary election ballot was Bethany Hantz. She filed her paperwork with the Benton County Auditor's Office bright and early on Monday morning, the first day th...
BENTON COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE - March 2nd, 2026 1:21 pm

Iowa has a new temporary registration tag, which is designed to be tamper resistant and trackable. This new design allows officers to quickly distinguish legitimate temporary tags from fake tags. Each...
VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR - February 27th, 2026 5:47 pm

RecapLuke Truesdell was the man charged with the beating deaths of Romondus "Ro" Cooper, Amanda Parker, Keonna Ryan and Brent Brown in Hiawatha on June 5, 2024. Truesdell was sentenced on Friday afte...
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES - February 27th, 2026 10:19 am

National Association of Counties Legislative Conference draws nearly 2,000 county leaders along with cabinet-level speakers, members of CongressBenton County Auditor and Commissioner of Elections, Hay...
VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR - February 26th, 2026 10:46 am

Abby Cronk spoke with the local Vinton Kiwanis Club on Tuesday. She shared that she's been with the Vinton Palace Theatre for 20 years and told of her experiences during her time there. Cronk began a...
FFA - February 24th, 2026 3:08 pm

By: Co-Reporter, Bri DulinOn Wednesday, February 18th, Vinton-Shellsburg FFA members traveled to Hawkeye Community College to compete in the Sub-District FFA Contest, earning impressive results. Advan...
VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR - February 23rd, 2026 1:45 pm

The Iowa City Police Department was dispatched to the Highlander Hotel on Highlander Place in Iowa City, just after 11:45 p.m. on Saturday, February 21.The police report says that 32-year-old Allison ...
VALERIE CLOSE, EDITOR - February 22nd, 2026 3:48 pm

If you were anywhere near the Skate Center on Saturday night, you didn’t need a calendar to tell you something special was happening. The parking lot was jam-packed, the street lined with cars and p...