Category: State News

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Three people, all part of the same family, were killed in the shooting in Cedar Rapids yesterday. The victims were Jan Perry Jackson, 61, Melissa Ferne Jackson, 68, and Sabrina Hana Jackson, 19. A fourth family member, Alexander Ken Jackson, 20, suffered a gunshot wound to the foot. Officials believe that Alexander was the person who allegedly used a gun to shoot his father, mother, and sister. He was taken into custody and charged with three counts of first-degree murder.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A Dubuque woman accidentally shot herself in the arm on Tuesday. Police say the incident appeared to be accidental with no criminal intent.

BALDWIN, IA (IRN) – A missing and endangered boy from Baldwin in Jackson County has been found safe after an AMBER Alert was issued on Tuesday. The five-year-old was located in Anamosa. His suspected abductors have been taken into custody.

LAKE CITY, IA (IRN) – A fire destroyed Dobson Pipe Organ Builders in Lake City Tuesday. The facility manufactured organs for churches, schools and private customers around the world. Officials say it appears a malfunctioning fan caused sawdust to ignite, sparking the fire. One person was injured.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Online classes at Des Moines Area Community College will resume Thursday following almost two weeks of cancelations due to a cyberattack.

SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – Sioux City native Shelby Houlihan will miss this week’s U.S. Olympic Trials for track and field and also lost her chance to compete at the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo after she was suspended for four years after testing positive for a banned substance. She is the U.S. record holder in the women’s 5,000 and 10,000 meters. Houlihan, 28, said “I want to be very clear. I have never taken any performance enhancing substances…”I’m not interested in cheating. I don’t do this for the accolades, money, or for people to know my name. I do this because I love it.”

COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – Council Bluffs Police have arrested a woman accused of setting another woman on fire. Lindsy Maves was arrested Monday on charges of attempted murder, arson and willful injury. Police found a woman with severe burns outside a homeless services center, and transported her to a local hospital. The victim was involved in a disturbance with Maves, who is accused of spraying the victim with a flammable substance and lighting her on fire. Maves then hit the victim in the face with something as a witness tried to put out the flames.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The FBI on Friday arrested an Iowa man and his adult son after they discussed on social media their involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Daryl Johnson, 50, of St. Ansgar and 29-year-old Daniel Johnson of Austin, Minnesota, were arrested separately. An FBI affidavit quotes Daniel Johnson as writing, “We stormed capitol hill, and lol Dad and I were one of the first ones inside” to a contact on Facebook on Jan. 6.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Protests forced the Des Moines City Council to recess its first in-person meeting of 2021 until Wednesday. During the council meeting, protesters gathered in front of the city council with posters calling for the defunding of the Des Moines Police Department. The most active protests were preceded by a consent agenda item authorizing $10,000 for a Des Moines police officer to attend training in Florida.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines Area Community College announced Monday it will not resume online classes Tuesday due to “unforeseen delays” in restoring the schools’ network. A June 3 ransomware attack impacted DMACC’s internet network, forcing the school to cancel classes and shut down campuses. In-person classes resumed June 9, but DMACC’s online classes have remained closed for over a week.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A long-serving Iowa politician will not return to office after the next election in November 2022. Rob Hogg, the Democratic state senator for Iowa’s District 33 in Cedar Rapids, made the announcement on Monday. He was first sworn in to the state senate in 2007.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Three teens are in custody after the Iowa State Patrol says they led officers on a chase in a stolen car from northeast Iowa that ended in a rollover crash at Highway 5 and Fleur Drive south of Des Moines. The car was stolen from the Waverly area. The 15-year-old driver, along with two passengers both aged 16, suffered minor injuries and were taken into custody.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines Area Community College says it is making progress restoring its network and tentatively plans to resume online-only classes on Tuesday. Their system was hacked over a week ago, and the FBI is investigating.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – The Dubuque Rescue Mission, a homeless shelter in downtown Dubuque, is now reaching out to help feed families. They’ve opened up the Kindness Cafe, a food truck that will travel around town to bring food to people who need it.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – Grace Lynn Keller was crowned Miss Iowa 2021 in Davenport over the weekend. Keller, a University of Iowa graduate, will represent Iowa in the 100th anniversary of the Miss America pageant in December. Her social impact initiative includes a literacy program for students between kindergarten and third grade. For her talent portion she performed a contemporary dance.

EUGENE, OR (IRN) – Laulauga Tausaga is one of the most decorated athletes in Iowa Hawkeye history. The senior hoped to repeat as discus champion during the National Track and Field Championship in Eugene, Oregon on Saturday. She threw a career-best mark of 63.53 meters, but it wasn’t enough. Arizona State thrower Jorinde Van Klinken threw an NCAA record 65.01 meters on her final throw to take home the first place title, with Tausaga finishing second.
Tausaga finished her storied career earning another First Team All American honor.

KNOXVILLE, IA (IRN) – Two people were killed in a motorcycle crash north of Knoxville Saturday afternoon. A vehicle heading northbound on Highway 14 was rear-ended by another vehicle also traveling northbound. It caused the first vehicle to enter the southbound lane in front of a motorcycle. The man and woman on the motorcycle from Indianola were pronounced dead at the scene.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – An Iowa man who threatened to have Democratic U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York assassinated has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison.
Kenneth Dean Brown, 57, of Waterloo, was sentenced Friday for threatening Nadler in a phone call on Dec. 18, 2019. Nadler was a U.S. House impeachment manager in former President Donald Trump’s first impeachment in late 2019.

MARION, IA (IRN) – Marion Local enforcement officials are noting a higher rate of incidents involving pets being left unattended in vehicles during a recent stretch of hot weather. Marion Police said there had been an “alarming increase” in calls from people concerned about pets that were in vehicles outside of stores and businesses as air temperatures exceeded 90 degrees.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The University of Iowa is expanding sales of beer and wine throughout Kinnick Stadium this fall and at Carver-Hawkeye arena and other venues later in the year.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines rescue crews launched a water rescue Friday after a man reportedly jumped into the Des Moines River. Authorities had not reported a person being found as of 11 p.m.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Former Department of Human Services Director Jerry Foxhoven asserts in a new lawsuit that Governor Kim Reynolds and her senior staff forced him out as Iowa Department of Human Services director “because he refused to engage in illegal activity,” and to prevent him from seeking legal advice about possible misuse of federal Medicaid funds.

LAS VEGAS, NV (IRN) – Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak on Friday signed a law that would make Nevada the first state to vote in the 2024 presidential primary contests, bumping Iowa and New Hampshire from their leadoff spots. Signing the law is a gamble. It’s likely to set off maneuvering by other states, especially Iowa and New Hampshire, to move up their contests.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – Employees at a credit union in Dubuque had quite a surprise Friday morning. A black bear walked by the building. It is the second sighting of a bear this month.