State News

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Wednesday, June 22, 2022

YARMOUTH, IA (IRN) – An eastern Iowa man is missing. No one has been able to find him since a grain bin collapsed on Tuesday morning in Yarmouth. The other man who was with him was able to make it out. RANDALIA, IA (IRN) – Police have charged Derek David Smith of Randalia with failing to care for his livestock resulting in the deaths of over 3,200 hogs. They weren’t given enough food. The charge of Livestock Neglect is punishable by up to one year in jail and a $2,560 fine. JASPER COUNTY, IA (IRN) – An Illinois pilot came up about 40 miles short in his fuel calculations on Tuesday, forcing him to make an emergency landing in a Jasper County bean field. A pilot and a passenger reported that they’d run out of gas and were making an emergency landing in a field. Authorities found the plane, pilot and passenger all safe in the field. The plane was flying from Illinois to Ankeny. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Ankeny Centennial co-head football coach Jerry Pezzetti has been inducted to the National Coaches Association Hall of Fame. Pezzetti, who owns 435 career victories, is the all-time winningest coach in Iowa history. He is entering his 61st season coaching and has been the co-coach with his son Ryan for nine years at Centennial. Prior to that, he was the head coach at Ankeny for 42 years, Melcher-Dallas for seven and Murray for one.


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Tuesday, June 21, 2022

ANKENY, IA (IRN) – The father of a 4-year-old Ankeny girl who fatally shot herself in the face with a handgun in May has been charged in the incident. Akeem Holmes, 33, is charged with involuntary manslaughter, making firearms available to a minor and neglect or abandonment of a dependent person. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – A Mason City man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in a February shooting that killed one man and left another with disabling injuries. 24-year-old Daniel Martez Judon IV is one of two people charged in the Feb. 6 shooting in Cedar Falls that killed 19-year-old Arthur Craig Lang III, of Clear Lake, and left another man with a partially severed spine. Judon was in a vehicle with others when they began arguing with a group of pedestrians, and the two groups began shooting at each other. WASHINGTON, D.C. (IRN) – Iowa Democrats hope big changes to the caucus process will keep them first in the nation, as they make their case to the national party Thursday in Washington D.C. URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – Monday, the Iowa Board of Regents met to consider higher tuition at the three public universities for the upcoming school year. This would impact students at the University of Iowa, Iowa State, and the University of Northern Iowa. The tuition at each of the three regents universities would rise 4.25% in the upcoming 2022-23 school year if approved by the board. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – The Cedar Rapids Fire Department jumped into rescue mode Saturday night after it received a call of a kitten caught in an 8-inch pipe. When crews arrived on-scene, they assembled an extra-long capture device, lowered it down and successfully secured the kitten, returning it to its delighted owner.


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Monday, June 20, 2022

CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – One North Iowa man has been sentenced for his role in a fatal shootout on College Hill in Cedar Falls in February that killed a Clear Lake teen. Daniel Martez Judon, 24 of Mason City, has been given 10 years in prison for pleading guilty to intimidation with a dangerous weapon. Police say Judon, Brandon Javon Mitchell, and Arthur Craig Lang were in a vehicle in Cedar Falls on February 6 when a confrontation with several pedestrians escalated into gunfire. Lange, 19 of Cedar Falls, was killed in the shootout and police say Mitchell critically injured another man. OSKALOOSA, IA (IRN) – Authorities are investigating the June 18 death of 28-year-old Alison Cooper of Newton. The investigation began after Ms. Cooper was brought to Mahaska Health, in Oskaloosa, where she was pronounced dead. As part of the investigation, officers arrested 35-year-old Brandon Lee Slobe of Oskaloosa for numerous narcotics violations. FREMONT COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A crash in Fremont County Saturday resulted in three people being injured and two teenagers dying. A Dodge Charger driven by Rodelio Martinez, 26, lost control and struck a 2020 Jeep Wrangler. Martinez was not injured. The Jeep Wrangler contained a driver and four passengers, who all were ejected from the vehicle. A 20-year-old male, an 18-year-old female, and a 15-year-old female were injured. A 14-year-old male and 16-year-old female died. None of the minors were wearing seatbelts, and alcohol may have been involved. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A violent assault led to a shooting inside a Hy-Vee grocery store in Des Moines on Sunday morning. Shots rang out around 10 a.m. inside the store at East 26th Street and East Euclid Avenue. Police say Kapri Lashawn Francis, 30, of Des Moines, violently assaulted a woman without provocation. The woman who was assaulted, who lawfully possessed a handgun, fired once in self defense, shooting Francis in the leg. Another male customer was shot in the foot by the bullet when it ricocheted. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two jet skis flipped over on the Des Moines River downtown on Sunday afternoon. One was carrying one adult and two children and the other was carrying one adult and one child. They were rescued before going over a dam.


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Saturday, June 18, 2022

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Supreme Court issued a highly anticipated abortion ruling Friday. The court made it easier for lawmakers to limit or outlaw abortion in the state, reversing a decision by the court four years ago that guaranteed the right to abortion under the Iowa Constitution. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Democrat Deidre DeJear has chosen a running mate as she seeks to unseat Governor Kim Reynolds this fall. On Friday DeJear introduced Eric Van Lancker as the next potential Lieutenant Governor of Iowa. Van Lancker is currently serving as Clinton County Auditor, a position he’s been elected to four times. APPANOOSE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The body of an 84-year-old man was found Friday at Rathbun Lake. Two local fishermen discovered the man’s body floating approximately 15 feet from the shore. The fishermen dragged the body to the shore and called 9-1-1. The man had backed up his pickup to the boat ramp and launched a small fishing boat, presumably in preparation to fish. The pickup was still running and the boat had drifted approximately 100 yards across a small cove. The man was wearing a life jacket, and there is no evidence of foul play. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A sweeping reform of Iowa’s bottle bill is now law. Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the bill Friday. Redemption centers will receive triple the amount of money from bottles and cans. Grocery stores will no longer have to accept them. Most of the changes take effect in January of 2023.


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Friday, June 17, 2022

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Supreme Court issued a highly anticipated abortion ruling today. The court made it easier for lawmakers to limit or outlaw abortion in the state, reversing a decision by the court four years ago that guaranteed the right to abortion under the Iowa Constitution. POLK CITY, IA (IRN) – A body has been recovered after crews conducted a search for a man who went missing on Saylorville Lake. Authorities received a call at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday about an adult man who began to struggle, went under the water and didn’t resurface. First responders used jetskis, drones and boats during the search. The man’s body was recovered around 8 p.m. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Supreme Court expects to issue a ruling on a 2020 abortion law that implemented a 24-hour waiting period for women seeking abortions. A lower court blocked the law last summer and the state is asking for the state’s high court to reinstate it. AMES, IA (IRN) – An Ames company that makes specialty edible oils said Thursday it’s bought the Newton maker of Maytag blue cheese, with plans to expand production and add jobs. AgCertain Industries says it purchased Maytag Dairy Farms from Midwest Growth Partners, a West Des Moines private equity firm. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – International opera star Simon Estes is returning home to give his final goodbye. In honor of the Des Moines Metro Opera’s 50th anniversary, the company is hosting Estes’ final operatic performance. The show is planned for July, where the Des Moines Metro Opera will present the Iowa premiere of Porgy and Bess.