MAHASKA COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Two people were killed in a head-on collision in Mahaska County Monday. According to the Mahaska County Sheriff’s Office, at 10:15 a.m. two vehicles collided on Highway 92. A Chevrolet S10 pickup crossed the centerline and collided head-on with a Mack semi tractor/trailer. The driver of the pickup was 32-year-old Chase Matthew VonLienen of North Liberty and the passenger was 40-year-old Bobbie Jean Milford of Wellman. Both were pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the semi was uninjured.
HAMILTON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A man died over the weekend in a lawn mower accident in Hamilton County. The Sheriff’s Office says a man was mowing a steep ditch when the mower tipped over and pinned him underneath. First responders arrived, but the man died a short time later.
BRIGHTON, IA (IRN) – A kayaker who went missing Saturday has been found deceased. KCII-radio reports after flipping his kayak on the Skunk River, 52-year-old David Alan Woodson of Brighton went missing. A search ensued. The body of Woodson was located late afternoon Monday.
DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A man convicted of shooting his girlfriend in the head is eligible for parole after serving four years of his 45-year sentence. KCCI-TV reports Brian Case will go before the Iowa Parole Board July 17. Case shot his then-girlfriend Ellie Van Dam in the head. Van Dam survived the shooting but lost hearing in one ear and is paralyzed on one side of her face. Police were called to Case’s home 33 times before he shot Van Dam and he has a lengthy and violent past.
JOHNSTON, IA (IRN) – A Johnston woman is facing charges she left two young children alone. WHO-TV reports Winnie Wleh is charged with two counts of child endangerment. A 2-year-old and a 4-year-old were found near an apartment complex pool asking strangers for food and water. Officers later found the children standing outside a locked apartment with no parents or guardians present.
DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Opioid-related deaths in Iowa plunged to their lowest level in five years. The Iowa Department of Public Health reports there were 137 deaths related to opioids in 2018. That’s down from 206 in 2017 and reverses a fairly steady upward trend of fatalities.
IOWA (IRN) – A new specialty license plate design is available to vehicle owners in Iowa starting this month, according to the DOT. The new option is the “blackout” plate. It features an all-black design with white lettering. It will be available in the standard six-character alphanumeric plate for $35 or a personalized seven-character plate for $60. Funds from the plate will go toward the Road Use Tax Fund, which funds various road and bridge projects throughout the state.