Longtime Marengo attorney winds down fruitful career

MARENGO — Born and raised in Gregory, South Dakota, Lou McMeen is happy to be in Marengo.

The former Iowa County Attorney attended the University of South Dakota for a year and played basketball there. But he didn’t like it.

His father had attended dental school at the University of Iowa, and Lou grew up a Hawkeye fan, so he transferred to Iowa his sophomore year of college. His basketball career ended when he blew out a knee.

McMeen graduated from law school in 1967 and made his home in Marengo.

McMeen went to work for Louis Schultz, who was Iowa County Attorney at the time. Five years later, Schultz was a District Court judge, and in 1980 he was appointed to the Iowa Supreme Court.

As an associate in Schultz’ law office, McMeen was assistant county attorney. In 1968 McMeen ran for County Attorney and served in that position until 1973. It was a good way to practice trying cases, said McMeen.

McMeen didn’t run for re-election in 1973, but became county attorney again in 1999. “I kind of wanted to get my son involved in it,” McMeen said. Tim McMeen is currently the Iowa County Attorney.

“You can’t control your case load” as county attorney, said McMeen. At one time he had three murder trials he had to prepare for.

Thirty-seven-year-old Tonch Weldon, of Blairstown, was charged in the shooting death of 35-year-old Amy Gephart in June of 2009. Weldon killed Gephart because his wife was planning to leave him for her.

Less than two months later, McMeen was preparing another murder case. Curtis Baily, 33, was found dead inside his home in downtown Marengo. His common-law wife, Denise Frei, and two 19-year-olds from Belle Plaine — Jacob Hilgendorf, Frei’s son, and Jessica Anne Dayton, Hilgendorf’s friend — were convicted and given life sentences.

In May of 2010, Jeffrey McAdam, 46, of Victor, was shot and killed by Peter Riggs, 33, of Columbus, Neb., while McAdam was working at a rest stop on Interstate 80 near Victor.

Riggs pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.

Iowa County had help from the State Attorney General’s Office trying the five defendants in the three murders, McMeen said.

McMeen didn’t see another murder charge until 2017 when Ernest Kummer, 60, of Monroe, was shot four times in the head at close range while he was sleeping in his semi-trailer cab at a rest stop on Interstate 80 near Victor.

Mariana Lesnic, 43, was found guilty of the murder and was sentenced to life in prison.

In the 1970s McMeen didn’t have many traffic cases. There was only one deputy in addition to the sheriff, and they didn’t enforce traffic violations, he said.

Today Iowa County has several deputies and a lot of traffic on I-80. The case load is five or six times what it was when McMeen first became county attorney, he said.

“People had more respect for law enforcement, for the court system than they do now,” said McMeen. “People don’t even bother to pay their fines anymore. We have to be a collection agency.”

In the late 60s he might have seen eight convictions in a year for operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. “You pick up that many in a weekend now,” McMeen said.

But 50 years ago officers didn’t have definitive parameters for charging a person with OWI, said McMeen. They arbitrarily used 1.5% blood alcohol concentration as the mark for intoxication, but the state has since set .08% as to define intoxication.

“There’s a heck of a lot of difference,” McMeen said.

Tim McMeen entered the law practice with Lou in 1996 at the age of 25. Tim succeeded his father as county attorney, and his father took a part-time position as assistant county attorney.

It’s too much for one person,” said McMeen, especially since the county attorney position is part-time.

”We’ve had a terrible time finding young attorneys to come to Marengo,“ said McMeen.

Earlier this year, county supervisors agreed to hire a full-time assistant county attorney to replace the two part-time assistant attorneys.

“I think we saved the county around $40,000 or $50,000 a year,” said McMeen.

That assistant, Tim Dille, does only county work, said McMeen. Dille was formerly the assistant county attorney in Benton County.

“We’re real happy to have him,” said McMeen.

“I enjoy what I do for the most part,” said McMeen. But he’s getting older and doesn’t have the energy he used to have. He still works a few hours a couple of days a week, sometime helping the county attorney at no cost to the county.

Pool Pals

In addition to practicing law, McMeen has involved himself community issues.

He led the Pool Pals as they raised funds for a new pool after the old one closed during COVID. It wasn’t in good shape, McMeen said.

An Iowa Valley graduate and client of McMeen’s saw that the pool was closed, and she and her husband indicated they would give $250,000 to fix the pool, said McMeen.

The city seemed “luke warm” to the idea of having a swimming pool, said McMeen. The city suggested installing a splash pad, but the client didn’t want that.

“We got the citizens together,” said McMeen. About 70-80 people showed up at a city council meeting asking that the city open the pool.

“We started the fundraising project,” said McMeen.

Pennies for the Pool started collecting money years before, said McMeen, but had raised only $30,000. The city agreed to put a bond issue for a pool to a vote of residents, and it passed with 73% of the vote.

“The attitude of the city improved,” said McMeen.

Flood control

One of the things McMeen is proudest of is establishing a drainage district and getting a levy built.

The first time residents were asked about being in a drainage district, they rejected it, McMeen said. They didn’t want to pay the additional taxes.

“That spring they had a really bad flood in town,” said McMeen. Floodwaters reached the courthouse.

The town became supportive of building a levy. “Without it, you wouldn’t want to have a house in Marengo,” McMeen said.

McMeen has seen a lot of improvements in town recently, he said. “We’ve got the hospital going full-bore” after it almost failed, he said. The American Legion built a new building and the town has a few restaurants.

“Sometimes we had none,” said McMeen.

“I love the town. I love the people,” said McMeen. The people have been supportive of him for 57 years, and he’ll continue to be supportive to them, he said