IOWA – A Des Moines Register report shows nursing homes have low COVID-19 booster rates. According to a CDC release, eight percent of staff in retirement communities has received updated booster this year in relation to the virus that caused hundreds of elderly deaths over the past few years. The report also shows 45 percent of residents are vaccinated in Iowa — well above the national average, but below previous rounds of the Coronavirus vaccine. EVANSDALE – It’s been eleven year since hunters found the bodies of two missing girls, and their cases remain unsolved. KCCI-TV reports on December 5th, 2012, Elizabeth Collins and Lyric Cook were found dead after they went missing in July of that year. Investigators found their bikes just hours after they went missing, but the cousins could not be located. The girls were found dead about 25 miles from where they were last spotted in Bremer County. The killer has yet to be found. MARSHALL COUNTY – An Albion woman faces charges related to the death of a man in May. WHO-13 reports 86-year-old Clarence Borton was killed when a vehicle driven by Morgan Weigelt rear-ended his tractor. Weigelt was charged with homicide by vehicle, failure to stop, and use of a communication device while driving in Marshall County.

SAC COUNTY – A search group aiming to find a missing Sac County man has suspended operations as they try to find new leads. WHO-13 reports the United Cajun Navy has paused their efforts to find David Schultz of Wall Lake. His wife Sarah said David was last seen on November 20th, and was on his way to deliver a load of hogs from Eagle Grove to Sac City. His truck was found on Highway 71, fully loaded with David’s wallet and phone. The United Cajun Navy has searched more than 100,000 acres as part of the effort. WAUKEE – The family of a boy who was found dead over the weekend in Waukee after falling through ice has identified the child involved in the incident. KCCI-TV reports nine-year-old Aiden James-Harrison Smith was discovered by emergency crews after a neighbor called police about a hole in the ice and a pair of shoes near a pond. The incident remains under investigation. NEWTON – Earlier this year, NASCAR announced their top lineup of drivers would be coming to the Iowa Speedway, and now, that event has a name and sponsor. The Iowa Corn 350 will be run on Sunday, June 16th. The event is already sold out and was highly anticipated after the race track in Newton missed out several times on hosting the top drivers in the sport. Iowa Speedway will be host to three NASCAR events over the course of the weekend.

UNION COUNTY – Two Omaha teenagers were killed and another was injured in a crash in Union County late Friday. The Iowa State Patrol reports Ford Explorer driven by 17 year old Izabella Martinez was heading eastbound on Highway 34 as a grain hopper trailer operated by Kelly Lee Jones of Creston was stopped at an intersection. That large vehicle then entered the intersection while making a left turn. Both Martinez and Alex Conner Mauseth were killed by the collision. CALHOUN COUNTY – A man missing since late October in Calhoun County was found dead after a month-long search. WHO-13 reports 54 year old Mark Riesberg was found inside of a car near Jolley, dead as a result of a single gunshot wound. The Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office does not suspect foul play for the man who was missing since October 28th. IOWA – Both the Iowa Hawkeyes and Iowa State Cyclones have received invitations to play one more football game this season. The Hawkeyes will take on Tennessee on New Year’s Day January 1st in the Citrus Bowl, while the Cyclones return to Memphis to take on the hometown team in the Liberty Bowl on Friday, December 29th.

IDA COUNTY – A Ida Grove woman has been charged for the death of a toddler that happened in May. The Iowa Department of Public Safety reports 23 year old Billie Mosier has been charged with child endangerment resulting in death, a Class B felony. Her three year old son Jordan was found unresponsive in May, and was pronounced dead at a hospital in Omaha. WASHINGTON D.C. – All four members of Iowa’s congressional delegation voted to remove a fellow member of the U.S. House Friday. According to the Des Moines Register, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Ashley Hinson, Zach Nunn and Randy Feenstra all elected to remove George Santos from office. The group was part of 311 members who chose to remove the embattled New York representative who faces 23 federal charges related to fraud and lying to Congress. The move to expel came after a House Ethics Committee report that showed evidence of Santos and his alleged wrongdoing. NORWALK – The trial of a Norwalk Woman accused of killing her newborn children will not talk place in Warren County. WHO-13 reports Megan Staude faces first degree murder for the incident that occurred in February. A judge ruled to move the proceedings due to pretrial publicity. Staude and her father Rodney are both charged for the crime but the two cases are no longer being connected. His trial is awaiting a competency evaluation. BOONE – A Boone man convicted for hate crimes had his sentence upheld by the Iowa Supreme Court this week. Robert Geddes left five anti-LGBTQ notes on homes with gay pride flags in the community. In an appeal, Geddes said the conviction amounted to violation of his free speech; but the court ruled against him.

WASHINGTON D.C. – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst needed assistance from a fellow senator after choking on her lunch Thursday. NBC News reports Senator Rand Paul performed the Heimlich Manuever on Iowa’s junior senator during a Republican event. Ernst did not require further medical attention. IOWA – A major publisher and state association are uniting in a lawsuit against the state around a law banning books in school libraries. WHO-13 reports Penguin Random House and the Iowa State Education Association are challenging Senate File 496, claiming the new law violates the 1st and 14th Amendments. Several popular authors have joined the suit as well, and are aiming to block enforcement of the bill before it goes into effect January 1st. CLIVE – A Clive man has pled guilty to federal charges of wire fraud. According to court documents, Zachary James Flaherty used his position as an insurance agent and annuity salesperson to defraud elderly individuals out of their retirement savings. Flaherty admitted to engaging in a scheme to defraud some of his clients. Flaherty told one of the victims he would invest proceeds from the sale of her house on her behalf and for her benefit. That individual wrote two checks, totaling $170,000, to a company Flaherty owned, which he used to purchase a boat and other automobiles.