COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – A man awaiting trial in a Council Bluffs murder has been accused of helping another inmate try to kill himself. The Daily Nonpareil reports that Ben Lein was charged Thursday with assisting suicide. Lein handed a towel to the other inmate, who is on suicide watch. The inmate tore the towel into strips and tried to hang himself. A jailer saw the incident and removed the towel before the inmate could die.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids motorcyclist was taken to the hospital with serious injuries after he was rear-ended by a driver. KWWL-TV reports 47-year-old Todd Mullenax was driving a 2007 Harley Davidson motorcycle when 21-year-old Anthony Carter Jr., drove into the back of him on Highway 151. Carter was driving a 2004 Acura, and witnesses say Mullenax had slowed to make a turn. Mullenax was not wearing a helmet.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Police are investigating a shooting in Des Moines, according to KCCI-TV. It happened Thursday at the Oakview Terrace apartments. Witnesses heard a succession of gunshots and saw a victim transported to the hospital in an ambulance. 40-year-old Mark Thompson was found with a non-life threatening head wound.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – Davenport Police are investigating a stabbing at a park along the Mississippi River yesterday, according to WQAD-TV. The victim was taken to the hospital with potentially life-threatening injuries. No arrest has been made.

SPENCER, IA (IRN) – Authorities have charged a former Spencer pastor with five counts of sexual exploitation by a counselor. The Sioux City Journal reports Kevin Grimes is accused of engaging in sexual conduct with three clients while providing mental health services to them. Grimes resigned in May as pastor at DaySpring Assembly of God Church.

HARLAN, IA (IRN) – A startup company thinks it can turn salmon into a cash crop near Harlan. KETV reports Jackson Kimle and his company, Inland Sea, want to use a system that’s used in Europe to grow the fish. The system uses tanks that move the water to keep the fish swimming like they would in a river. If all goes according to plan, the Harlan facility could produce more than 5 million pounds of salmon every year.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A disabled man from Dubuque has forgiven a thief who stole one of his fundraising jars. Jake Hesselman, who was born without arms and legs, has been raising funds to buy a special car that will allow him to drive. Friends and family have already raised $90,000 of the $100,000 needed. When notified that 27-year-old Richard Bell had been arrested for stealing a donation jar containing $300, Hesselman says with all the generosity he’s seen, there’s no reason to be mad.