19-YEAR-OLD YANKTON MAN INDICTED FOR STABBING
YANKTON, S.D. – A Yankton man has been indicted on one count of Second Degree Murder and one count of Manslaughter in the First Degree in connection with stabbing death of another Yankton man.
The incident occurred on December 13th at an apartment in Yankton.
According to a news release Theodore Kranig, Jr., 19, was indicted Friday by a Yankton County Grand Jury. The Second Degree Murder charge carries a maximum sentence of mandatory life imprisonment and the Manslaughter in the First Degree charge carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Kranig is being held at the Yankton County Jail on a $250,000 cash bond.
DOCTORS SAY GOVERNOR JIM PILLEN INJURED SPLEEN, RIBS IN HORSEBACK RIDING ACCIDENT
OMAHA, NE – Doctors said Monday that they were pleased with the progress Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen was making following a horse riding accident in Columbus on Sunday.
Pillen is in the hospital after he was bucked off a new horse he was breaking in Sunday on a ride with his daughter, his son-in-law, and his granddaughter on family land near Columbus.
Following the accident, Pillen was transported to Columbus Community Hospital, then was flown to Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, arriving at about 4:40 p.m., doctors said.
The initial statement from the governor’s office on Sunday night seemed to downplay the injuries, indicating he was airlifted from Columbus Community Hospital to the trauma unit at Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha “out of an abundance of caution.”
But on Monday, doctors revealed the extent of Pillen’s injuries, explaining that he sustained a spleen injury that required surgery.
The governor underwent a coil embolization, which doctors called “minimally invasive surgery.” They said he was sedated for the procedure for about an hour — meaning Lt. Gov. Joe Kelly was acting governor during that time, as he is when Pillen travels outside Nebraska.
Pillen also sustained a kidney laceration, which didn’t require treatment; as well as a minor fracture to his L1 vertabrae and seven rib fractures — all on the left side.
There were no spinal cord or head injuries, according to Dr. Hillman Terzian, a trauma surgeon at Nebraska Medicine.
“The governor’s injuries were serious but not life-threatening and could have been much worse,” the release from Pillen’s office states.
The governor has been in the intensive care unit, which doctors said was normal for spleen injuries and rib fractures, particularly at his age. The governor is 68 years old.
Doctors said they were pleased with his progress overnight and expected he would move out of the ICU on Monday afternoon. An update from Pillen’s office sent just before 4 p.m. confirmed that he had indeed moved into a “step-down unit” at the hospital.
Doctors said Monday that the governor was motivated to get out of bed and has been walking around.
“He’s been very motivated to get out of bed. He’s already walking laps, which is impressive. He’s a doctor’s dream, as I told Dr. Evans — thinking it would be great if more patients did this,” Dr. Terzian said. “From examining him and talking to him, he’s a tough guy, and it shows with the way he’s recovering so far. I’m very pleased with that.”
Doctors expect he will be in the hospital for another day or so, mostly to keep an eye on his rib fractures. Before releasing him — maybe on Tuesday — they will make sure nothing else pops up after the spleen surgery, that his pain is manageable, and that he can breathe and function normally.
If the pain and breathing aren’t managed with that sort of injury, it’s hard for the patient to move around. It will take months to fully recover, and could even require surgery.
“We think he has a very good prognosis,” Dr. Terzian said.
Pillen’s office issued a release after the news conference, saying the governor had made arrangements to conduct work from his hospital room.
They said ribs take about three months to fully heal, but make progress over that time. If his ribs remain too bothersome for the governor to function normally, doctors said there are operative options.
Doctors said Pillen asked whether he would be home in time to watch Monday Night Football, and that he had been actively recruiting the medical staff to remain in Nebraska.
“He’s doing his job from the bed, and that’s great,” said Dr. Charity Evans, chief of trauma for Nebraska Medicine.
Pillen’s office also noted that the governor was in good spirits.
“The procedure was a success, and the Governor caught the second half of the Nebraska men’s basketball win over Murray State in his recovery room, while chatting and joking with his family and team,” Monday’s news release states.
Pillen plans to return to his office soon after Christmas.
MAN INDICTED IN OFFICER-INVOLVED SHOOTING AT YANKTON SCHOOL
YANKTON, S.D. – A Watertown man is facing multiple charges in connection to an officer-involved shooting.
According to South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley, Andrew Jondahl has been charged with two counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, one count of possession of a firearm while intoxicated and one count of possession of a firearm on public elementary or secondary school premises.
The charges stem from an incident earlier in December when Jondahl approached officers holding two shotguns. According to the Attorney General’s Office, Jondahl refused officers commands and police fired their weapons, hitting Jondahl in the shoulder. This all occurred in the parking lot of the Yankton High School.
Jondahl was taken to the hospital, where he is still recovering.
The Attorney General’s Office deemed the shooting by officers, justified.
The two aggravated assault charges each carry a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison.
DRIVER DIES FOLLOWING SEMI CRASH AND FIRE IN MERRILL, IOWA
MERRILL, IA – A fatality has been confirmed after a semi crashed in Merrill, Iowa, and caused a fire.
The Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office says they started receiving 911 calls at about 3:40 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 23. When authorities got to the area of Jackson Street and Highway 75 in Merrill, they found a semi and trailer fully engulfed in flames.
According to the sheriff’s office, the semi was going southbound on Highway 75 when “for unknown reasons” it failed to negotiate a curve. This caused the semi to leave the roadway, go through a ditch, then through a business parking lot and into Jackson Street. The vehicle came to a stop after it struck a tree at a residence in the 100 block of Jackson Street.
Crews were able to get the fire under control but the driver of the semi was pronounced dead at the scene.
“The name of the deceased driver will not be released until proper identification can be made by the state medical examiner’s office,” stated the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office in a press release.
Multiple crews responded to the fire Monday morning and fire trucks could be seen around Liberty Auto Sales in Merrill. However, the sheriff’s office said that the fire did not impact the auto lot’s building.
IT’S TIME FOR ANOTHER ELECTION IN IOWA…ALREADY?
DES MOINES, IA – Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has set the date for an opening that she created. On December 16th, the governor announced that she had selected Chris Cournoyer of LeClaire to serve as lieutenant governor. That decision created a need for a special election.
Watch this story about the moment that Chris Cournoyer became part of Iowa history.
Cournoyer had been serving her second term in an eastern Iowa state senate seat when the governor chose her to replace Adam Gregg, who announced on September 3rd that he was resigning to become the new president and CEO of the Iowa Bankers Association.
Senate District 35 represents Clinton, Jackson and Scott Counties and includes Clinton, DeWitt, Camanche, Wheatland, Maquoketa, and Princeton.
A special election to replace Cournoyer will take place on Tuesday, January 28th.
