DES MOINES – Governor Kim Reynolds ordered all flags in Iowa to be lowered to half-staff immediately until sunset on August 31st to remember the victims of the Annunciation Catholic Church and School shooting in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Two children were killed and 17 people were injured as a shooter attacked while children were attending mass at Annunciation Catholic Church to celebrate the first week of the school year. Gov. Reynolds’ order is issued in conjunction with President Trump’s proclamation to lower the United States’ flag for the same amount of time. SPENCER – A South Dakota man has been charged with murder in connection to the death of an Atlantic man. KTIV reports 44-year-old Wade St. John, Sr., faces one count in the first degree following an arrest on Wednesday. He was taken into custody for a fight that resulted in the death of Djay Loudner of Spencer. BOONE – The Iowa High School Athletic Association announced expanded coverage of its championships starting in 2025-26 alongside new television tournament partners. In addition to free streaming through the IHSAA’s website, dozens of tournament event dates will appear across multiple platforms through arrangements with Gray Media, Marquee Sports Network, Mediacom, and Nexstar. Through IHSAA-contracted video productions, the selected networks, channels, and apps of each tournament partner will feature events across seven sports and nine sites in the 2025-26 athletic year.

SIOUX CITY – An Iowa Democrat has broken a Republican supermajority in the Iowa Senate following a special election held on Tuesday. The Des Moines Register reports Catelin Drey won in Iowa District 1 with 55% of the vote, as reported by the Woodbury County Auditor’s Office. Drey fills the seat held previously by the late Senator Rocky De Witt, who died from cancer in June. Democrats now hold 17 seats in the Iowa Senate, which breaks some of the party majority opportunities held by Republicans when it comes to nominations. WINTERSET – A new county auditor has been elected in Madison County. KCCI-TV reports Independent Candidate Michele Brant won with 70% of the votes, defeating Republican Matthew T. Schwarz. he had been serving as the interim auditor after the resignation of Teri Kaczinski. This marks the end of the electoral conflict that included alleged misconduct against Kaczinski. DES MOINES – In July, a water utility was notified of nearly $10 million coming its way following the conclusion of a court case. WHO-13 reports Des Moines Water Works is receiving $9.7 million from 3M and DuPont. The multi-district case comes from a 2023 lawsuit, where several public water systems sued the companies over what are called “forever chemicals.” Nearly $12.5 billion is in the settlement fund provided by the four companies accused of leaking the PFAs into drinking water sources.

AMES – Reports of an active shooter at Iowa State University on the first day of fall classes were false, according to Iowa State University police. WHO-13 reports officers responded to multiple calls in what appeared to be an attempt at “swatting.” The move has scammers call in a false report to prompt the response of police tactical teams. INDIANOLAPOLIS – Nike’s newest signature athlete shouldn’t come as a surprise to Iowans. WNBA Superstar Caitlin Clark is expanding her athletic apparel partnership, according to KCCI-TV, with a new logo revealed for a clothing line set to launch on October 1st. The former Iowa Hawkeye has struggled to see the floor for the Indiana Fever due to injury in the 2025 season. DALLAS COUNTY – An online sportsbook told a court it was within its rights to void a $14 million payout to a Dallas County resident due to possible errors. Iowa Capital Dispatch reports Nicholas Bavas is suing DraftKings after he claims the sports gambling website voided bets he placed last year as weather threatened to cut the AT&T Pro-Am Golf Tournament short. DraftKings was still accepting bets for the event, which they claim was an error, and that Bavas agreed to the book’s house rules. A trial in the case is scheduled in fall of 2026.

BREMER COUNTY – An Urbandale woman died and five other people were injured in a crash in Bremer County over the weekend. The Iowa State Patrol reports the collision occurred when one vehicle ran a stop sign and slammed into another Saturday afternoon. Forty-one year old Lungawia Chalthleng was a passenger and was pronounced dead on scene. Five others were transported to area hospitals with injuries, including one by helicopter. TAMA – The family of a Tama man killed by his wife is formally requesting she return a large insurance payout made before the investigation into the death began. KCCI-TV reports the estate of Ryan Cooper is suing following the conviction of Karina Cooper for first degree murder. Karina was accused of killing Ryan in 2021. She received a $500,000 insurance payout prior to the investigation concluding. DUBLIN, IRELAND – Rocco Becht passed for two touchdowns and ran for another score, helping No. 22 Iowa State beat No. 17 Kansas State 24-21 in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic on Saturday in Ireland. The win marked head coach Matt Campbell’s 100th career coaching victory. Iowa State has beat Kansas State in five of the past six seasons.

KNOXVILLE – One person is dead following an officer-involved shooting in Knoxville. Police Chief Aaron Fuller released a statement about an incident that occurred Thursday night, in which officers encountered a man attacking a woman. During the interaction, a Knoxville Police Officer fired his weapon, striking the male. Police say they rendered immediate medical care and contacted Knoxville Fire and Rescue. The man who was hit by gunfire was transported to a Des Moines-area hospital, but was pronounced dead from his injuries. The names of those involved will not be immediately released. TAMA – An officer-involved shooting in Tama County was considered legally justified by Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird. KCRG-TV reports a welfare check was conducted on July 5th for Logan Kurth. He’s accused of pointing a handgun at responding officers, and he was fired upon after a warning to drop his weapon. The Attorney General released a detailed report, justifying the actions of the officers on scene. DES MOINES – The Iowa Department of Public Safety announced on Friday the launch of its redesigned Sex Offender Registry website. The updated site improves functionality and aims to provide Iowans with critical tools and resources to access information on registered sex offenders. The site remains accessible at the same web address. Updates include homepage links to active registrants and a most-wanted list.