wbPM3CSi Weather…

TONIGHT…MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS ZERO TO 5 BELOW. SOUTHWEST WINDS

10 TO 20 MPH.

.SATURDAY…SUNNY. HIGHS 10 TO 15. WEST WINDS 5 TO 15 MPH.

.SATURDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS ZERO TO 5 ABOVE. SOUTHWEST

WINDS 5 TO 15 MPH.

.SUNDAY…SUNNY. HIGHS 20 TO 25.

.SUNDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLEAR. LOWS 5 TO 10.

.MARTIN LUTHER KING JR DAY…MOSTLY SUNNY. HIGHS IN THE MID 20S.

.MONDAY NIGHT…PARTLY CLOUDY. LOWS 5 TO 10.

.TUESDAY…MOSTLY SUNNY. HIGHS IN THE MID 20S.

.TUESDAY NIGHT…PARTLY CLOUDY. LOWS 15 TO 20.

.WEDNESDAY…PARTLY SUNNY. HIGHS 30 TO 35.

.WEDNESDAY NIGHT…PARTLY CLOUDY. LOWS 20 TO 25.

.THURSDAY…PARTLY SUNNY. HIGHS IN THE MID 30S.

.THURSDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOWS 20 TO 25.

.FRIDAY…MOSTLY CLOUDY. A SLIGHT CHANCE OF LIGHT SNOW. HIGHS IN

THE MID 30S.

 

Jamestown  (CSi) Family and Friends gathered Friday afternoon, at the Stutsman County Courthouse for the  formal Investiture Ceremony for newly elected Southeast District Court Troy LeFevre.

During the program, the Call to Order and Pledge of Allegiance was given by the Presiding Judge, of the Southeast Judicial District, Hon., Daniel Narum.

The Invocation by Monsignor Wald of the Basilica of St. James.

The Presentation of the Gavel was by the Southeast District Bar Association President, Kim Rademacher.

Remarks and the Oath of Office, along with the Presentation of the Robe  was given by Judge John Greenwood.

Judge LeFevre then gave the Concluding Remarks.

Following the Investiture, guests were invited to a reception at the Jamestown Elks Club.

LeFevre who was born in Jamestown graduated from Jamestown High School in 1992. Upon graduation from the University of North Dakota in 1996 he attended the Denver Paralegal Institute graduating in 1997.

Upon graduation he moved to Dickinson, North Dakota and worked on oil well drilling rigs in western North Dakota and eastern Montana for nearly two years. Following this he attended the North Dakota School of Law graduating with the Class of 2002.

Judge LeFevre worked in private practice in Grand Forks as well as a two year stint as a Law Clerk and for the past ten years with the Stutsman County State’s Attorney’s Office. He is married to the former Wenda Grossman of Dickinson and resides in Jamestown with her and their three children.

 

Valley City (CSi)  Valley City Mayor Dave Carlsrud has announced that the “Coffee With The Mayor,” gatherings have been discontinued.

He thanks Valley City citizens for supporting the program, however there was not the community interest in attending.

He says during his mayoral campaign individuals thought  it was a good  idea.  He adds, that the fact the gatherings were not well attended might be  a good sign that the community may be going in a positive direction.

He says residents that want coffee, are invited to stop in at his City Hall office or call or e-mail any concerns.

 

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Police allege in court filings that opponents of the Dakota Access oil pipeline allegedly made threats against officers and public officials in North Dakota last year, prompting additional security for the state’s governor.

The allegations come in filings for a lawsuit filed in November by pipeline protesters who accuse police of excessive force in a clash over a blockaded bridge.

A state crime bureau agent says there were three threats made against then-Gov. Jack Dalrymple. Prosecutors are considering charges against a 41-year-old man who allegedly made one of them.

The filings also detail alleged threats against Morton County officials. The sheriff and his wife were given personal security for a time. Extra patrols and residence checks continue for them and two county commissioners even though the protest encampment has dwindled.

 

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota’s Three Affiliated Tribes says it will charge a higher tax than the state on the reservation’s oil production.

The Legislature in 2015 passed a measure that abolishes some price-based incentives in exchange for a lower tax rate. Tribal leaders say they never agreed to the change and want a higher tax rate to pay for consequences of oil development on the Fort Berthold Reservation.

The lower tax rate went into effect on Jan. 1, 2016.

Three Affiliated Tribes Chairman Mark Fox says the tribes will collect the higher tax for the past year and in the future.

State officials say that would violate a revenue-sharing agreement with the state, and could lead to decreased production on the reservation.

Fox says he doesn’t believe oil production will be affected.

 

FARGO, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota farmers last year produced record corn, soybean, canola and dry pea crops.

The Agriculture Department says in its crop production summary that North Dakota’s corn crop totaled 517 million bushels, up 58 percent from 2015. The state’s soybean crop totaled 249 million bushels, up 34 percent.

The canola crop of 2.7 billion pounds was up 7 percent. The dry pea crop of 12.3 million hundredweight was up 52 percent.

North Dakota also saw a rise in the production of sugar beets, lentils, dry beans and oil sunflowers.

The state’s potato, flaxseed, safflower and alfalfa crops were down over the year.

 

 

WILLISTON, N.D. (AP) — The Williston City Commission has paved the way for two oil field housing companies to turn a vacated crew camp into a hotel.

The Williston Herald reports that Target Logistics and Lodging Solutions proposed plans to change their temporary workforce housing facility to a more than 600-bed hotel in November after a yearlong struggle against the a city enforced crew camp ban.

Officials had said there was plenty of available housing and the camps were no longer needed.

The Planning and Zoning Commission recommended the hotel’s preliminary plans to the city, as long as Target Logistics removes cabins from the site and repurposes buildings to meet zoning and building code standards.

For the proposed project to move forward, the city rezoned the property from light industrial zoning to general commercial, which allows hospitality operations.

 

In world and national news..

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Russian embassy in Washington will neither confirm nor deny reports of frequent contacts between a top aide to President-elect Donald Trump and Moscow’s ambassador. A senior official said Froday there were multiple phone calls between Trump aide Michael Flynn and the Russian ambassador the same day President Barack Obama imposed sanctions as punishment for Russia trying to meddle in U.S. elections. A Trump spokesman said a call took place a day earlier to exchange “logistical information.”

CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel says the Justice Department civil rights investigation of the city’s police department is “sobering” and that the city will proceed with reforms. After Friday’s release of a harshly critical Justice Department report, the mayor said the city has already implemented some of the recommended changes. He cited expanded de-escalation training for officers and stricter use-of-force polices that were put in place after the 2015 release of video showing a white officer shooting a black teenager 16 times.

DETROIT (AP) — Takata Corp. has agreed to plead guilty to a single criminal charge and will pay $1 billion in fines and restitution for concealing a deadly defect in its air bag inflators. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Detroit announced the plea deal Friday. Prosecutors  also unsealed a six-count grand jury indictment against three former Takata executives. They’re accused of altering test reports that showed the inflators could rupture.

WASHINGTON (AP) — If you haven’t signed up for health insurance, you may soon be getting a not-too-subtle nudge from the taxman. The IRS is sending personalized letters to millions of taxpayers who might be uninsured, reminding them that they could be on the hook for hundreds of dollars in fines under the federal health care law if they don’t sign up soon. Republicans say the $4 million letter-writing campaign is a waste of money, since Congress is already moving to repeal the law.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Tears of joy are flowing freely  in Jacksonville, Florida, where a young woman who was stolen at birth 18 years ago has been able to meet her birth family, by way of a video call on Facetime. Her paternal grandmother says Kamiyah Mobley — who has just learned that that was her birth name — looks just like her daddy. Velma Aiken says her long-lost granddaughter will need time to come to terms with her new identity. The woman she had long believed was her mother is under arrest in South Carolina, charged with kidnapping.