HIAWATHA, IA (IRN) – A Hiawatha Iowa man was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the 2016 killing of his mother. The Des Moines Register reports 33-year-old Joseph Duane Hubbard told officers he killed his 56-year-old mother in her home by shoving a rotten apple down her throat during a heated argument. She died from asphyxiation.

GARNER, IA (IRN) – An accused mail thief has been arrested, according to KIMT-TV. Carl Douglas Werstein, 36, of the northern Iowa town of Leland, is charged with theft. The Hancock County Sheriff’s Office says it began receiving complaints in of mail being stolen from rural mailboxes. Werstein became a suspect and law enforcement set up a sting to catch the thief. Two items were placed in a mailbox monitored by authorities and Werstein drove up to the mailbox around 4 am and took the “trap mail.” He was apprehended.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A firefighter from the eastern Iowa town of Prairieburg was hurt while battling a brush fire that re-kindled Friday, according KGAN-TV. Nine agencies responded to the fire. The injured firefighter was taken to the hospital and is expected to be okay.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Governor’s office and the Republican led Iowa State Legislature have reached an agreement on a tax cut and reform plan. For income taxes, the Governor says the average Iowan will see a 10% tax break immediately. At full implementation, which could happen as early as 2023, the Governor’s Office says some Iowans will see a 25-percent tax savings. Critics say the state budget is already too tight.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Get ready for the return of those ticket-issuing speed cameras on Iowa interstate highways. The Iowa Supreme Court ruled Friday that the Iowa Department of Transportation doesn’t have the authority to regulate speed cameras. In a unanimous decision, the justices told the Iowa DOT it can only enforce laws, not make its own. And right now there is no law banning speed cameras.