GOMERS

NOT PROTECTED: Even though Iowa has a below-average rate of motorcycle deaths per registered riders, it has one of the nation's highest rates for motorcycle deaths in which a helmet wasn't worn, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. From 2008 to last year, 82 percent of motorcycle fatalities in the state involved riders who weren't wearing helmets. Helmetless riders were involved in 72 percent of crashes resulting in incapacitating injuries, according to the Iowa DOT Office of Traffic and Safety.

Iowa is one of only three states in the country without a helmet law. The NHTSA estimates that if all motorcyclists wore helmets, the number of fatalities could be cut by more than a third.

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OPENING DELAYED: Nearly a month after fire damaged the landmark restaurant, Hamburg Inn No. 2 owner Dave Panther says it still could be weeks before the restaurant is fully repaired and ready to open its doors. It turns out the damage was more extensive - and expensive to repair - than it initially seemed.

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NOT SO OPEN: Iowa Public Information Board has issued its first charges since it began accepting complaints last July. The board charged Washington County Attorney Larry Brock with allegedly failing to respond to a former county Conservation Board member's request for correspondence subject to Iowa's open records law. Brock has the right to refute the charges at a July 10 public hearing.

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