COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – Authorities have charged a Council Bluffs man accused of spanking his 2-year-old so hard she was left with bruises. 25-year-old Ryan Rapier is charged with felony child endangerment resulting in injury. The Daily Nonpareil reports Rapier told investigators that he’d spanked the girl twice Monday because she kept getting out of her crib and throwing things around the bedroom. He said he lost his temper and didn’t mean to hurt the child.

BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – An Iowa prosecutor said the motel clerk was a bad actor, and the jury agreed, convicting the man of theft and other crimes during a staged robbery. The Hawk Eye reports that 28-year-old Charles Smith and an accomplice faked a struggle during the fairytale robbery at a Burlington motel. The two “struggled,” and the other man fled with a wad of cash in one hand and a pistol in the other. Investigators found the performance unconvincing.

CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Board of Regents has approved a tuition increase at Iowa’s three public universities, starting in the fall. The Iowa City Press-Citizen reports the board voted Thursday to approve an across-the-board $216 tuition hike. Regents say increases are needed because the Iowa Legislature has reduced state funding to the institutions by nearly $30 million.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Hospital Association is opposing the Republican proposal to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, according to KCRG-TV. The association says under the Act, fewer are using charity care, and that more than 150,000 Iowans gained access to health care because of the medicaid expansion back in 2014. They will lose coverage under the proposed plan.

AMES, IA (IRN) – Experts at ISU and the DNR say a common chemical used by farmers is sickening oak leaves, leaving them deformed as if they’ve been eaten by insects. The condition is known as oak tatters, and scientists say the chemical acetochlor (ass-UH-toe-cluhr) is to blame. So far, the DNR has received more than 1,000 reports of oak tatters this spring — most of which are from the eastern half of the state where white oaks are most prevalent.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – After more than two months without a winner, the Powerball jackpot has grown to $435 million. The jackpot for Saturday night’s drawing will tie for the nation’s 10th largest lottery prize. No one has matched all the balls drawn in the game since April 1, when a player in Arizona won $60 million. The chance of winning the jackpot? About one in three million.