Author: Iowa Radio News

HIAWATHA, IA (IRN) – An Iowa man pleaded guilty to taking money from a 15-year-old who was dead at the time. Noah Herring, of Tiffin, went missing in April. Authorities found his body a few days later in the Coralville Reservoir. The medical examiner says Noah died of drowning. Scotty Harmish, 47, of Hiawatha, pleaded guilty on Friday to fifth-degree theft charges for taking money from Noah’s wallet. KCRG reports that three juveniles have been charged in connection to Noah’s death. The investigation was hindered by false information given by defendants who were present when Noah drowned. KCRG reports no one present called 911 for help.

IOWA (IRN) – Another 3 people with COVID-19 have died and there are an additional 287 confirmed cases, the state reported Saturday. There have been a total of 785 COVID-19-related deaths in Iowa.

BOONE, IA (IRN) – The Iowa High School Athletic Association announced Friday fall sports will begin as scheduled. The announcement comes as COVID-19 cases have consistently climbed in Iowa over the past few weeks.

IOWA (IRN) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has ordered that all flags in Iowa be lowered to half-staff in honor of Georgia Congressman John Lewis, a civil rights icon who died Friday.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Health reported 287 new positive coronavirus cases and 3 additional deaths in the state as of 10 a.m. Saturday. According to IDPH data, there have been 37,903 positive cases, 27,800 recoveries and 785 deaths since the pandemic began.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Hundreds of Iowans drove around the governor’s mansion on Friday night calling for Gov. Kim Reynolds to sign an executive order making masks mandatory. Protesters said they don’t want Iowans to wear masks everywhere, just in places like schools and jobs.

VAN METER, IA (IRN) – Gov. Reynolds issued a proclamation during her Friday press conference that addresses concerns about students and staff returning to schools this fall. It states that in-person learning is the preferred method of instruction. Reynolds said schools and families would have some remote learning options but that more than half of all learning must be in-person. It permits remote learning when parents select remote learning as the best option for their family.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Several employees at Cedar Rapids radio stations KHAK and KRNA tested positive for the coronavirus, according to KGAN-TV. The stations have closed for a deep cleaning, and employees are working from home. Iowa hit a single day record high in cases Friday.

IOWA (IRN) – Gun permit applications are skyrocketing in Iowa and gun shops are seeing a shortage of firearms and ammunition. In the first six months of 2019 the state received 1,746 new gun permits. Applications in the first six months of 2020 show that number has nearly tripled to 6,857 permit requests.

IOWA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Health is reporting a record 879 more positive COVID-19 cases in the state as well as the deaths of five more Iowans. 782 Iowans have now died from COVID-19.

IOWA (IRN) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said Friday that Iowa schools must prioritize in-person learning when classes resume this fall. Reynolds did not specify to what extent her proclamation would allow remote learning. Iowa schools switched to online lessons last spring as the coronavirus pandemic began. Some Iowa school districts have said they plan to start the fall term partly or completely online.

JOHNSON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Charges have been filed against three juveniles and one adult following the investigation tied to the search for a missing teen in April. KCRG-TV reports officials say witnesses provided investigators false information. Fifteen-year-old Noah Herring was reported missing on April 8. His body was later found on April 11 at the Coralville Reservoir. An autopsy found the cause of death was drowning and the manner of death was undetermined. But officials said the investigation was hindered by false information given by defendants who were present on the day Herring drowned. Officials said no one present that day called 911 for help.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A longtime spokesperson of the Iowa Department of Public Health said Thursday she believes she was forced out of the department because she advocated for open communication with reporters during the COVID-19 pandemic. Polly Carver-Kimm had spent more than 12 years with the department.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – School board members in Iowa City say they are disappointed in some members of the public after the district chose to move to online classes to start the school year. School board members received multiple emails that they say were targeted and racist.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The number of initial unemployment claims filed in Iowa between Sunday, July 5, and Saturday, July 11, was 11,125, according to Iowa Workforce Development. That’s an increase of more than 1,000 from the previous week.

BALLTOWN, IA (IRN) – The Dubuque County community of Balltown has a 100% participation rate in the 2020 census. This makes it the first city in Iowa and the second in the United States where everyone has completed the survey. The population of Balltown? 68.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A federal judge has denied an Iowa drug kingpin’s requests to delay his execution, which is scheduled for Friday. Dustin Honken’s spiritual advisor asked for the execution to be delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic. Honken is facing execution for the 1993 slayings of five people in the Mason City area. Prosecutors say Honken killed them in an attempt to thwart an investigation into his methamphetamine trafficking business.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two adults were found dead on Des Moines’ south side Wednesday after a child called 911 to report an injury in a home. The minor told dispatch that they believed their mother was injured. The child is OK.

CORALVILLE, IA (IRN) – Coralville Mayor John Lundell has issued a proclamation about COVID-19 mitigation efforts. Lundell is asking that individuals wear face masks and practice social distancing and asking for businesses to comply with these recommendations.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Des Moines Airport is getting improvements. The airport board approved spending $3.9 million to improve the Fleur Drive entrance to the airport. That includes a new entry road that is longer than the current road. This will give drivers more time to figure out which directions to go.

USA (IRN) – Walmart on Wednesday announced the policy requiring all shoppers to wear face masks, which will apply to all of its 5,000-plus retail outlets in the United States, including Sam’s Club locations. The requirement begins Monday.

ANAMOSA, IA (IRN) – Two corrections employees in Anamosa were injured in an incident on Tuesday. According to the Iowa Department of Corrections, an inmate allegedly hit an officer multiple times from behind with a pointed piece of aluminum. The officer and a counselor who responded to the incident received minor injuries. The inmate was uninjured.

IOWA (IRN) – Coronavirus test results from the Test Iowa program are not being immediately reported to the Iowa Department of Public Health as required by law, State Auditor Rob Sand said Tuesday. Instead, once the test results are analyzed by the State Hygienic Laboratory in Coralville, they are sent to two private, Utah-based companies involved in the Test Iowa program and then to a separate state office, making the public health department the fourth entity to receive them. Sand says that’s illegal, and a security risk.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowans planning trips to Chicago will soon be required to quarantine for two weeks. The Chicago Department of Public Health’s updated Emergency Travel Order mandates that people traveling from states with surging COVID-19 cases quarantine for 14 days. Starting Friday, residents from Iowa and Oklahoma will have to abide by the travel quarantine.

SACRAMENTO, CA (IRN) – Sacramento Kings forward and former Ames High School standout Harrison Barnes announced Tuesday that he has tested positive for COVID-19. He says he’s primarily asymptomatic and is doing well.