DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Although opioid use is going down in Iowa, methamphetamine use is going back up. A new state report on Iowa’s Drug Control Strategy shows opioid overdose deaths are slowing down. However, over 10,000 Iowans have been treated for meth use disorders so far this year – an all-time high. Marijuana is still one of the most commonly used illicit drugs in Iowa. Iowa has the nation’s lowest overall rate of illicit drug use at just under 7 percent.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Demonstrators gathered at the Iowa Statehouse and in other Iowa cities Thursday to protest President Donald Trump’s firing of former Attorney General Jeff Sessions and hiring of Iowan Matt Whitaker as acting attorney general. Sessions has been in the president’s crosshairs ever since he recused himself from the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. There have been reports that Whitaker has no plans to recuse himself, despite the fact that he has commented that the investigation has gone “too far.”

URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – A crash killed one person Thursday night in Urbandale, according to KCCI-TV. The driver of the car tried to exit I-80 onto I-35, but then hit a pole and rolled into the ditch.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A vehicle chase through Davenport yesterday resulted in the arrest of four juveniles who stole the vehicle. WQAD-TV reports the chase ended in a crash. The juveniles were aged 14, 14, 13, and 12. One of the juveniles had numerous active felony charges, and police found a loaded handgun in the wrecked car.

MARION, IA (IRN) – The effort to set aside a thousand acres of land in Linn County for monarch butterflies and other pollinators is getting closer to happening. KCRG-TV reports the City of Marion is looking at donating 29 acres this year to the 1,000 Acre Pollinator Initiative. The program sets aside urban public land to increase pollinator habitat. Area municipalities have set aside more than 170 acres to date.