Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
A 26-year-old Guatemalan man who previously worked at Agriprocessors in Postville will soon begin a two-year sentence in federal prison for identity theft.
Carlos Tzirin-Rodriguez admitted in court that he possessed a fake resident alien card and used the identification of another person without permission to gain employment at the kosher meatpacking company. The man had entered a guilty plea on July 16 to one count of possessing a resident alien card not lawfully issued to him and one count of aggravated identity theft, but was sentenced in federal court today in Cedar Rapids by U.S. District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade.
Tzirin-Rodriguez was sentenced to one day for possessing false identification documents. He was also sentenced to a mandatory consecutive sentence of 24 months for using the identity of another person. A special assessment of $200 was imposed. Following his release, he must also serve two-years in supervised release.
According to court records, Tzirin-Rodriguez, who was being helped by a smuggler, entered the country illegally in early April 2006 near San Ysidro, Calif. He was arrested on April 13, roughly one month prior to a massive immigration raid at Agriprocessors, in Waukon and initially charged with drunk driving. The state charges were later dismissed.
He is currently being held in U.S. Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal jail facility.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents raided Agriprocessors on May 12 and detained 389 people — roughly half of the kosher meatpacking plant’s workforce. Most of those detained pleaded guilty to criminal identity theft charges and have been sentenced to serve five months in federal prison.
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