AMES, IA (IRN) – A juvenile being transported to a detention facility made a run for it Wednesday and even got some help from drivers along the road. WHO-TV reports a transport service was taking the juvenile to a correctional facility when they stopped at a rest area along Interstate 35 near Ames. The transport officer stopped to use the facilities and the juvenile fled. He was picked up by a driver who said he thought the juvenile looked cold.
HAMILTON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A 28-year-old Anamosa man died Wednesday after falling while working on a construction site, according to KCRG-TV.The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office says Stefan Watermann fell from a cell tower in the eastern part of the county.
KEOKUK, IA (IRN) – Dozens of reports to law enforcement agencies about runaways, assaults and suicide attempts by troubled teens at Midwest Academy in Keokuk often were not made until days after they occurred, according to the Des Moines Register. Officers raided the boarding school for troubled teenagers recently to investigate allegations that a staff member sexually assaulted a student. The facilities have since been closed.
SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – A man accused of homicide in Sioux City is being held on bond of $750,000 and faces a 50-year prison sentence if convicted on the second-degree murder charge. 47-year-old Elias Wanatee was arrested Wednesday for the stabbing death of 50-year-old Vernon Mace of Sioux City. Wanatee was released from prison in January 2015 for the 1991 beating death of a man outside a Sioux City bar.
FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A man wanted for attempted murder was captured at a Fort Dodge Wal-Mart Wednesday. KCCI-TV reports Fort Dodge police received a tip that 36-year-old Jeremy Werneburg was at the store. Werneburg was wanted for attempted murder in Sac County. He resisted arrest, injured an officer, but that officer subdued Werneburg with a taser. He’s in jail.
WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – An Eastern Iowa Elementary school Principal is facing OWI Charges.
KWWL-TV reports 40-year-old Amber Dietz, the principal at Kingsley Elementary School in Waterloo was arrested for driving with a blood alcohol level of .159, nearly twice the legal limit.
DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Late Wednesday afternoon an expanded medical marijuana bill passed the Iowa House Commerce Committee, meaning cannabis treatment could soon be more easily available to patients. The bill would cover treatment for epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and terminal cancer.
BETTENDORF, IA (IRN) – Google chose an elementary student from Bettendorf as the Iowa finalist in their annual Google Doodle contest. WQAD-TV reports second-grader Shalini (SHAH-luh-nee) Chandupatla (CHAHN-doo-paht-luh) from Hopewell Elementary School submitted a doodle for the 2016 theme “What makes me… me.” Her design reads “I feel so good being ME!” and includes illustrations of reading, music, art, and outdoor activities.