State News

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Tuesday, September 29, 2020

IOWA (IRN) – Quarantine recommendations in Iowa are being changed and are veering away from CDC guidelines. Governor Kim Reynolds announced the changes are for non-healthcare and non-residential settings only. So the changes for schools, child care, and business settings are that close contacts of a person who tests positive for COVID-19 will no longer need to quarantine for 14 days “if a face covering was worn consistently and correctly by the positive case and close contacts.” The person who tested positive will still need to isolate. These changes only apply if masks were worn properly by both the person who tests positive and the people in close contact. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – An explosion caused by a gas leak in Dubuque was the source of a large fire near Loras College in Dubuque. A house was destroyed in the explosion, but nobody who lived there was injured. One firefighter was hurt, though the extent of their injury was not released. The explosion shook nearby structures. MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – A Mason City woman is facing felony drug charges after a traffic stop resulted in a deputy finding a drug pipe sticking out of a baby’s sock. Jami Garcia was a passenger in a vehicle that was stopped after the driver was visiting someone at the Cerro Gordo County jail. DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Board of Education has voted to temporarily appoint a new superintendent and chief financial officer in the Davenport Community School District. The state and the district have been working together for the last three years to address several issues including how minority students are disciplined, special education services and school safety concerns. The agency says not enough progress was being made. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Iowa’s eighth-largest city is asking its citizens to skip an annual Halloween tradition due to the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic. The city of Waterloo, citing guidance issued by CDC, announced Monday that its residents should not participate in door-to-door trick-or-treating in 2020. The federal agency considers that activity, along with parking lot-based “trunk-or-treat” gatherings, indoor costume parties, haunted houses, and hayrides, as high risk for spreading COVID-19.


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Monday, September 28, 2020

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The National Weather Service has confirmed four tornadoes were active during the derecho on Aug. 10. The National Weather Service in Des Moines used new high resolution imagery to identify the tornadoes. Three of the tornadoes touched down in Marshall county which had been impacted by a tornado in 2018. Another tornado was spotted in Tama county. The derecho left hundreds of Iowans without power and caused billions of dollars in damage. FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A Fort Dodge woman has been shot to death at her home, and police have arrested her husband in the shooting after an overnight search for him. Officers found Maggie Hurdel, 38, with a gunshot wound. She died at the scene. Her husband, 43-year-old Justin Hurdel, had fled the home in a vehicle after the shooting. The vehicle was later found abandoned. Police said he was found hiding in a shed. BUCHANNAN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office and the Independence Police Department arrested Matthew Glenn Barth on twelve counts of Sexual Abuse. All counts involved a child under the age of twelve. ANAMOSA, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Corrections reported that an officer was assaulted on Saturday night at the Anamosa State Penitentiary. An inmate unexpectedly struck the officer with a closed-fist strike to the face. Other officers stepped in to restrain the inmate. The officer assaulted did not have any serious injuries, but another officer who assisted was taken to a local hospital with a foot injury. MANCHESTER, IA (IRN) – A Manchester man who hit a pedestrian and then led authorities on a chase that ended with a sheriff’s deputy seriously injured has been sentenced to 10 years in prison. Kevin Krapfl, 30, was sentenced after pleading guilty to causing a serious injury with a vehicle, leaving the scene of a serious injury crash, operating while intoxicated-third or subsequent offense and operating without an interlock device.


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Sunday, September 27, 2020

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – One person was killed and multiple people were injured in a shooting incident at an after-hours club near downtown Waterloo on Saturday morning. Eight people at the scene suffered gunshot wounds, and four others were injured by debris, broken glass, or injuries while attempting to flee the scene. Police are unsure what started the confrontation. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – President Trump supporters organized a massive parade Saturday in Des Moines. Hundreds of cars, trucks and motorcycles drove through the city with flags and signs. The parade started at Farm Boy Garage and ended on Grand Avenue near the Statehouse. Organizers said the parade line stretched three miles long with nearly 600 vehicles. FORT WORTH, TX (IRN) – Breece Hall ran for 154 yards and three touchdowns, JaQuan Bailey had 3 1/2 sacks to become Iowa State’s career leader and the Cyclones opened Big 12 play with a 37-34 win at TCU on Saturday. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Only one more week until fans will be back in Jack Trice Stadium to watch the Iowa State Cyclones. This Saturday, sports bars took advantage of a gameday when fans had nowhere else to go. That will change next week, when Iowa State will allow 15,000 fans into the stadium for the Cyclones game against Oklahoma.


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Saturday, September 26, 2020

JONES COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The law enforcement officers involved in a shooting in Jones County have been identified. Iowa State Trooper Tyler Remley and Delaware County Sheriff’s Deputy Clayton Miller both shot at James Bartram, 51 on September 21. Bartram allegedly brandished a gun when law enforcement arrived at a home in Wyoming, Iowa. Bartram was hit in the upper torso. Both trooper Remley and deputy Miller are on paid administrative leave. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A shooting in Waterloo injured multiple people this morning. It happened at an after-hours club after 3:00 AM. It’s unknown how many are hurt and what the extent of their injuries are. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – On Friday, Gov. Kim Reynolds extended her proclamation closing bars in Story and Johnson counties. The proclamation has been extended another week, ending at 11:59 p.m. Oct. 4. The bars, taverns, wineries, breweries, distilleries and night clubs can continue to serve carry-out only. Restaurants are allowed to remain open, but have to stop serving alcohol at 10 p.m. IOWA (IRN) – Iowa has hit a new, all-time high for the number of outbreaks at long term care facilities. As of 10:30 AM Friday, there are now outbreaks at 50 facilities across the state, with 10 added in just the last 24 hours. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Members of the University of Iowa women’s swimming and diving team filed a legal complaint against the school Friday, arguing that a decision to eliminate their program violates a landmark gender equity law. The complaint argues that Iowa is not offering equal opportunities for female students to participate in sports as required by Title IX, the 1972 law that bars sex-based discrimination in federally funded education programs.


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Friday, September 25, 2020

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Greater Des Moines Partnership wants Des Moines students to get back into the classroom. The Des Moines Public School District has been providing 100%-online instruction due to coronavirus concerns. State law requires school districts to offer at least 50% in-person learning for families that choose that option, and DMPSD is in violation of state law. The partnership board passed a resolution that says remote learning could impact students’ ability to get a job in the future. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The man who killed an 18-year-old West Des Moines woman will spend the rest of his life in prison. Eliazar Gama was convicted of first-degree murder in the death of Sakira Bonnor in April 2019. Bonnor got into Gama’s vehicle to buy marijuana and robbed and shot her. He received a life sentence on Thursday and will be eligible for parole in 30 years. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – An SUV on I-380 in Cedar Rapids lost control on Thursday, hit a pole, rolled over, and ended up in a ditch. The driver was ejected and pronounced dead at the scene. PLYMOUTH COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A former Sheriff’s Deputy in Plymouth County is accused of burglarizing five pharmacies, interfering with the investigations into those incidents and stealing prescription pills and vintage pornography all while he was a member of the force. Aaron Leusink was fired in April. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Iowa regulators have issued their first citation to a meatpacking plant with a large coronavirus outbreak that sickened its workforce — a $957 fine for a minor record-keeping violation. The outbreak at the Iowa Premium Beef Plant in Tama in April resulted in 338 of the plant’s 850 workers testing positive for the virus, 80 more than previously acknowledged.