DES MOINES – Iowa school districts and communities will have the chance to apply for competitive state grants to feed hungry children over the summer. The Iowa Capital Dispatch reports Governor Kim Reynolds made the announcement Wednesday for $900,000 for multiple programs administered by the Iowa Department of Education and U.S. Department of Agriculture. This comes after Reynolds rejected the state’s participation in the Summer EBT program, which would give $40 of direct federal assistance per child, per month to families in need. Iowa would have needed to spend #2.2 million to receive the aid.

DES MOINES – Through the Safe Haven Law, two infants, a baby girl, born March 17, and a baby boy, born March 20, are now in the care and custody of the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services and will be placed with foster families until permanent placement is determined. This brings the overall total to 68 infants since the law went into effect more than two decades ago.
Iowa’s Safe Haven Act is as an option for parents in crisis to who determine they cannot care for an infant up to 90 days old. Designated locations include hospitals, police, and fire stations. Health and Human Services then works to place infants in approved foster homes while awaiting permanent adoption. In 2023, ten infants were relinquished to HHS custody under the Safe Haven Act.

IOWA CITY – Carver Hawkeye Arena was packed with fans celebrating the end of a two-year run to the national championship game for their favorite women’s basketball team, led by the game’s most iconic player. During a celebration of the 2024 season Wednesday, Iowa Athletic Director Beth Goetz announced Caitlin Clark will have her No. 22 retired from the team, according to KCRG-TV. Caitlin Clark is the only Big Ten athlete to sweep National Player of the Year Awards in consecutive seasons and is the all-time leading scorer in NCAA history.

ANAMOSA – The family of a corrections officer killed by inmates in 2021 is suing the Iowa Department of Corrections. WHO-13 reports Robert McFarland attempted to stop Michael Dutcher and Thomas Woodard from escaping the Anamosa State Penitentiary, but was attacked with a hammer alongside nurse Lorena Schulte. Both died as a result of their injuries. Dutcher and Woodard both pled guilty to first degree murder. The family of McFarland filed a wrongful death suit against the state in January, and has now added the department of corrections.

CEDAR RAPIDS – A former Iowa hospital IT worker is accused of using a stolen identity for more than three decades. Matthew David Keirans faces up to 32 years in prison in a federal case after facing state charges in Iowa last year. He’s accused of using the social security number of William Woods, who was homeless in California and arrested on similar charges. Keirans was an information technology worker in Iowa. Woods has a hearing to clear his conviction next week.

DES MOINES – The Iowa House of Representatives has passed a bill to regulate automated traffic cameras. The Des Moines Register reports this comes after years of debate and a lack of progress despite concerns with their use. House File 2681 passed on a bipartisan basis and is now up for consideration in the senate. The bill requires cities and counties to first receive a permit from the Iowa Department of Transportation and provide justification for their use, which includes records of traffic violations for at least one year and the number of collisions in that area. The cameras could only be used for tickets at speeds 11 MPH or greater over the limits, and several other restrictions are being placed in that version of the bill.

CEDAR RAPIDS – The individual killed in the April 6th officer involved shooting incident in Cedar Rapids has been identified as 40-year-old David Vanderhamm. The male bystander who was also shot during the incident has been identified, but his name and information will not be released at this time. The involved Cedar Rapids police officers are scheduled for interviews and they remain on critical incident leave pending the completion of the investigation. The names of the officers will be released upon completion of the interviews.

IOWA – Another week of colder than normal temperatures with rain and snow left Iowa farmers with three days suitable for fieldwork during the week ending April 7th, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Minimal fieldwork was done during the week, but some producers were able to apply anhydrous, manure, and dry fertilizer. High winds prevented some from spraying fertilizer towards the end of the week. Topsoil moisture condition rated 14 percent very short, 35 percent short, 47 percent adequate and 4 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture condition rated 26 percent very short, 38 percent short, 34 percent adequate and 2 percent surplus.

CLEVELAND – One more record was broken by the University of Iowa’s women’s basketball team. Their championship matchup with South Carolina had a preliminary audience of 18.7 million people on ABC and ESPN. The only sporting events to draw more since 2019 included football, the World Cup, and the Olympics. ESPN called it the most watched basketball game since the 2019 men’s championship game.

CEDAR RAPIDS – An investigation is underway for an officer-involved shooting that resulted in death. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation reports that the Cedar Rapids Police Department responded to a 911 call Saturday evening in which officers were requested for a welfare check after a person called for support. Dispatch indicated the individual was making homicidal and suicidal threats. Police claim they asked the individual to drop a weapon, but failed to do so and pointed it at police. Three officers discharged their firearms and struck the male suspect, who died on scene. A male bystander also was struck by bullets, and taken to a hospital for treatment. As of Sunday evening, nobody involved has been identified, but the three officers who fired their weapons are on paid leave, pending a routine investigation. No police were harmed in the incident.

CLEVELAND – Sunday marked the end of an era of thrills and highlights and did so just short for the Iowa Hawkeyes women’s basketball team. Two-time National Player of the Year Caitlin Clark had her journey end in black and gold without a championship, as the Hawks fell to undefeated South Carolina 87-75 in the NCAA championship game. It’s the second consecutive season Iowa had their season end as the nation’s runner-up. Clark finished her career breaking every scoring record available to her in the NCAA and modern college basketball, finishing with 3,951 career points.

IOWA – Those living south of Interstate 80 should have the best view at the solar eclipse scheduled this afternoon. The National Weather Service shows the southern three tiers of counties with a strong chance of less than 20% cloud cover during the event — with the area between Interstate 80 and Highway 20 closer to 40 to 60 percent, and even higher in northern Iowa. Most of the state is expected to be able to see 70 to 90% totality of the eclipse between 1 and 3 p.m.