Category: State News

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Data from the Iowa Department of Public Health shows an increase in positive coronavirus cases as the state set a new record for testing Thursday. On Friday, IDPH reported 493 new COVID-19 cases and 7 deaths. That brings the statewide total to 27,555 positive cases and 701 deaths.

OTTUMWA, IA (IRN) – Four young children saved their 2-year-old sister by telling authorities about abuse going on in their home in Ottumwa. KCCI-TV reports Ashley Lindley-Moser, 28, and her boyfriend Donald Graham are both charged with child endangerment causing bodily injury. Graham allegedly physically assaulted the 2-year-old with “unreasonable force” and “cruelty.” Police said their mother made up an excuse for the injuries, but the four children spoke up with the truth.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – The families of three workers who died after contracting coronavirus in a Marshalltown meat plant outbreak are suing Tyson Foods and its top executives, saying the company knowingly put employees at risk and lied to keep them on the job. The lawsuit alleges that Tyson officials were aware the virus was spreading at the plant by late March or early April but kept that information from employees. The lawsuit alleges the company failed to implement safety measures, allowed sick employees to remain on the production line, and falsely assured workers and the public that the plant was safe.

IOWA (IRN) – A return to summer warmth and humidity is expected today lasting into next week. Increased moisture will lead to near daily chances for rain, and we may get strong thunderstorms.

NEWTON, IA (IRN) – Want to go to a movie and still socially isolate? Valle Drive-In, the only drive-in movie theater in central Iowa, opens tonight. It’s a double feature; Zootopia and The Greatest Showman.

IOWA (IRN) – Four more Iowans have died from COVID-19 and 461 more have tested positive, according to the Iowa Department of Public Health. However the number of Iowans hospitalized while fighting the virus continues to decline. One out of every 11 residents have been tested for the virus.

GRINNELL, IA (IRN) – The Poweshiek County Sheriff’s Office arrested a man after he started multiple fires and shot at them during a standoff that lasted more than seven hours. On Wednesday, authorities were called to a residence southeast of Grinnell after Dwaine Anthony Bauman’s family reported that he was acting strangely with a gun. Bauman discharged the gun multiple times, and police didn’t fire at him. He set fire to a home, two vehicles, a barn and almost 100 bales of hay, and all were destroyed. A friend said Bauman was upset over a hog confinement project in the area and that “he has a message to tell the entire world…he was willing to burn down his whole house, risk his life, fight the police to free this land from industrial agriculture.”

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Given the recent surge in COVID-19 cases in Johnson County, at the University of Iowa, students, faculty, and staff will be required to wear face coverings on campus beginning July 1.

AMES, IA (IRN) – Iowa State University is the recipient of a one-year $55,000 grant from the COVID Project, where the goal is to develop a reliable COVID home test. The test works like a pregnancy test, and the sample can be saliva or urine.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A 3-year-old boy is safe despite nearly drowning in a Des Moines pool. KCCI-TV reports Garrett Sheppard was at a swimming pool in his apartment complex when he heard screaming and yelling, and saw another adult was pulling the child from the pool. Sheppard gave the child CPR, and said, “I have never seen so much water come out of a person…it was actually really, really scary.”

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Health reported 258 new cases and 2 deaths from COVID-19 on Wednesday. That brings the statewide total to 26,601 positive cases and 690 deaths.

IOWA (IRN) – Within weeks of Gov. Kim Reynolds agreeing to allow bars and restaurants to open to customers, Iowa’s two major college towns, Ames and Iowa City, are seeing spikes in coronavirus cases among young adults, raising concerns among health officials and prompting some businesses to again close their doors.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Iowa’s workplace safety agency says an inspection didn’t uncover any violations at the Tyson Foods plant in Waterloo. The plant, which is the largest pork processing plant in the state, has seen several employees die after contracting COVID-19. T

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office is reporting that 24 inmates have tested positive for COVID-19. So far no staff have tested positive. The 24 inmates have been placed in medical quarantine and will be tended to by jail nursing staff.

CLIVE, IA (IRN) – Black Lives Matter signs in a Clive family’s yard started a heated discussion on Sunday that ended in a woman’s arrest. KCCI-TV reports police charged Renee Corell-Newman with public intoxication and criminal trespass after she refused to leave the home where the signs were after berating the family for having the signs.

LINN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A North Linn Elementary School secretary improperly used bank accounts belonging to the school and the school districts’ Parent Teacher Organizations, according to the State Auditor’s office. Danielle Arnold, a former secretary at North Linn Elementary School, admits she used some of the funds for personal expenses, including paying off her house and car. The money was collected at book fairs and fundraisers to build a playground. Arnold then failed to deposit the funds, totaling over $26,000, to the correct school account.

NEVADA, IA (IRN) – A man who was reportedly knocking on doors and carrying a sword died in Nevada, Iowa, after being shocked with a stun gun. Nevada police said officers were called at 2:44 a.m. Monday and found a man sitting in a grassy area near a mobile home park with a sword. Officers ordered the man to drop the sword but police said he stated, “It stays in my hand.” Officers then used a Taser to shock the man, and they then retrieved the sword and handcuffed him. He stopped breathing, and died.

AMES, Iowa State University said Monday that nearly 4,900 people with university-affiliated email accounts received a racist email over the weekend. An email claiming to be sent from Equity Prime Mortgage “contained abhorrent, vile language, including references to violent white supremacy, lynching, and a racist slur.” The FBI is investigating.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The University of Iowa has paused ticket sales to 2020 Hawkeye football games until a clearer picture of Kinnick Stadium capacity and social distancing requirements are determined.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A storm rolled through the Des Moines metro in the early hours of Monday morning and left behind some damage and thousands without power. Some trees and light poles partially blocked roadways after estimated 60 mph winds knocked them down. Some vehicles were stranded in flash flooding.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A high-speed pursuit through metro Des Moines on Saturday ended with a driver facing multiple charges. A trooper clocked a vehicle on Interstate 235 at 94 mph in a 60 mph zone. The vehicle left the interstate, and at one point was clocked at 114 mph in a 35 mph zone. The driver was taken into custody and identified as 30-year-old Jesse Nicholas Joseph Lalli, of Des Moines. Lalli has been charged with driving while barred three times in the last month.

BEDFORD, IA (IRN) – A Bedford man has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of his mother. Cristian Andrew May, 32, allegedly killed 62-year-old Penny Sue Godfirnon with a knife.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A 20-year-old man was arrested and charged with attempted murder following a shooting in Cedar Rapids Saturday night. KCRG-TV reports Dondre’ Davon Lee, 20, was arrested on Sunday morning and charged with five counts of attempted murder among other charges. He shot at five people, injuring one. Earlier in the day his mother allegedly stabbed him in the head.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A spike in new cases of COVID-19 was reported in Iowa on Sunday, according to the Iowa Department of Public Health. As of 10:00am Sunday, 25,865 positive cases of the coronavirus have been identified in Iowa. That’s an increase of 441 cases over a 24-hour period. Four additional deaths were reported. 685 Iowans have died from COVID-19 in the last three months.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – The Dubuque County Fair will continue this year, according to officials, despite many summer cancellations due to COVID-19 concerns. Details are being finalized.