Category: State News

BROOKLYN, IA (IRN) – Federal, state and local agents are at the Iowa dairy farm that employed and housed the man charged with killing Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts. KCCI-TV reports agents from the Poweshiek County sheriff’s office, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and federal agencies were seen Thursday morning at Yarrabee Farms in Brooklyn.

NEWTON, IA (IRN) – Two people accused in the death of a man whose body was found in a vehicle earlier this year in Newton have had their charges upgraded to murder. The Des Moines Register reports Jeffrey Stendrup, 50, and Jaycie Sheeder, 24, were charged with first-degree murder in the death of Jeremy McDowell, 38. Stendrup, of Clive, allegedly assaulted McDowell with a baseball bat. A witness says Stendrup struck McDowell about 12 times.

GRINNELL, IA (IRN) – A new national poll commissioned by Grinnell College shows President Trump’s chances of re-election in two years are dim. According to the poll, if the 2020 Presidential election were held today: 36% will definitely vote for Trump, 43% definitely will vote for someone else, and 17% would consider someone else.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – People in Iowa City are once again raising concerns over the “Kinnick style” house a neighbor is building. KCRG-TV reports last year, neighbors sued to stop construction, saying it doesn’t fit the profile of the neighborhood and would likely be a “party house.” A judge dismissed the case. Now since football season has begun, neighbors are complaining of traffic problems the house is causing.

FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – Two sisters from Fort Dodge heard their mom’s heartbeat for the first time since she passed away 15 years ago. KCAU-TV reports their mom was an organ donor, and the woman she saved with her heart and lungs wanted to thank her family in person. They met, and the daughters were able listen to her heart beating one more time. Mom was able to save seven people’s lives with her donated organs.

CLERMONT, IA (IRN) – A man died after crashing his car into a pond at Skip-A-Way RV Park and Campground in Clermont Tuesday evening. KGAN-TV reports Steven Duane Baker Jr., 30, of Elgin, was driving his 2000 Mitsubishi Sport when he lost control, drove through a chain link fence and into the pond.The Fayette County Sheriff’s Office said rescue efforts were unsuccessful and Baker died at the scene. The incident is under investigation.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – Davenport police have identified the person placing vigilante-style flyers in the city over the weekend. WQAD-TV reports police have charged Adam Mayber, 20, of Wonder Lake, Illinois with disorderly conduct for admitting to “circulating and posting flyers advertising that a vigilante will begin killing ‘the homeless, the addicts, the junkies, the prostitutes, the gang members and all other human species.” Mayber turned himself in as the author of the flyers. He told police that the Night Lion is the main character of his fictional novel and that the flyers were put up as a form of publicity. He told police they were not intended to be threatening.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Iowa will pay $2.5 million to settle a claim involving a psychiatric patient at the University of Iowa Hospitals who eluded staff and jumped from the top of a five-story parking ramp. She died of complications from her injuries. The Des Moines Register reports the lawsuit alleged the hospital failed to communicate care assignments, did not communicate changes in her behavior and failed to adequately review medical records prior to taking her from a locked psychiatric unit. The staff also allegedly failed to follow locked door procedures that could have prevented the incident.

ALTOONA, IA (IRN) – The body of an Altoona man reported missing last week has been found.
KCCI-TV reports the body of Kenneth Wade was found by a volunteer search and rescue team in a wooded area off the trail near where his vehicle was found. No cause of death has been released, but foul play isn’t suspected.

LEHIGH, IA (IRN) – A Webster City man was shot in the upper body by his brother Saturday while they were squirrel hunting at the Brushy Creek State Recreation Area. He’ll be OK. DNR officers believe it was an accident and no charges have been filed.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Following the severe weather that struck Benton and Linn Counties Monday, the National Weather Service confirmed that three separate tornadoes touched down. No injuries were reported. In other weather related news, Cedar Rapids is preparing for a more than 16 foot crest on Thursday evening. That’s considered a major flood stage.

BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – A man sought by police for more than 20 years has been arrested in Burlington. 41-year-old Dawarn Moncrief was taken into custody Thursday. The Hawk Eye reports that he’s charged with going armed with intent for the June 27, 1998, stabbing of DiAngelo Willis. Police say Moncrief fled the stabbing scene and remained free until Thursday.
He was arrested on drug and other charges after the vehicle he was in was stopped for an illegal license plate.

HARRISON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Three people were killed and two others were injured in a three-vehicle crash on Interstate 29 in Harrison County. The Iowa State Patrol reports 80-year-old Rock Valley resident Richard Van Zee drove off the road, across the median and hit two vehicles coming the opposite direction. His car sideswiped one vehicle and then hit a pickup truck. Van Zee and 77-year-old Mary Ann Van Zee were killed in the crash. Indiana resident Elizabeth Cobbs, 65, was in the back seat of the pickup and was also killed.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A possible tornado caused damage to trees and homes in Cedar Rapids Monday night, according to KCRG-TV. No severe weather warnings were in effect. The National Weather Service is sending a storm survey team today to determine if the damage was caused by straight-line winds or a tornado.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A woman was rescued but a man is missing after a kayak overturned in rapidly moving water on Indian Creek in Cedar Rapids yesterday. KGAN-TV reports dive crews responded.

AUDUBON, IA (IRN) – The Iowa State Patrol says a driver distracted by texting rammed into the back of a trooper’s patrol car. The crash happened when a young driver in Audubon hit the parked patrol car in a residential neighborhood. The driver had been texting and driving when the crash happened. No one was injured.

EASTERN IOWA (IRN) – Flash flooding hit many eastern Iowa and western Illinois cities Sunday night. WQAD-TV reports Muscatine and Clinton had as much as five feet of water on some city streets.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A letter posted on phone poles and businesses in Davenport is being investigated. KWQC-TV reports the letter reads, in part, “the city of Davenport has been infested with the diseased. The homeless, the addicts, the gang members and the like need to disappear permanently from our world…the city of Davenport will soon bear witness to the to the swift and bloody hands of the Night Lion’s justice…” The letter ends with, “the Night Lion’s gun is loaded, ready to go. The question is, are you?”

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Catholic bishop of Des Moines is calling for churchgoers to fast certain days this month, according to KCCI-TV. It’s in response to decades of sexual abuse by priests. Bishop Richard Pates says it’s time for penance and prayer to honor the victims of sex abuse in the church.

BARTLETT, IA (IRN) – A medical emergency caused a close call for passengers involved in a Sunday accident in the western Iowa town of Bartlett, according to WOWT. A vehicle left the road, struck several mailboxes and left the scene with a board sticking through the windshield. Deputies located the vehicle and determined the driver suffered from a medical condition that caused the accident. A 10-foot-long two-by-six board went through the windshield and stopped a few inches from the front seat passenger, who was a child. Everyone is OK.

AMES, IA (IRN) – Severe weather cancelled the Iowa State University football game Saturday, and Cyclone fans are wondering if they will get their money back, or if the game will be replayed. So far, ISU isn’t saying. WHO-TV reports the last time a game was cancelled was in 1963 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, and in 2001 a game was postponed after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

CLIVE, IA (IRN) – A Libertarian candidate for the Iowa Legislature has been arrested and jailed on harassment charges. The Des Moines Register reports that 39-year-old Chad Brewbaker, of Clive, was jailed Friday after police say he repeatedly ignored a court order to stop all communication with a woman.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa Department of Human Services officials have used the state’s safe haven procedures for the 32nd time since the law went into effect. A boy was born August 19, 2018, at an Iowa hospital and then released to the custody of DHS. Through Iowa’s safe haven law, parents have the option to safely hand over custody of babies 30 days old or younger without fear of prosecution for abandonment. The parent, or their authorized representative, can leave the newborn at a hospital or healthcare facility and can remain anonymous.

AMES, IA (IRN) ISU’s season opening game with South Dakota State was cancelled just minutes into the first quarter. The game will be recorded as a “no contest” and the stats won’t count. After Deshaunte Jones scored a 55-yard TD to make it 7-0 in favor of Iowa State, the teams and fans were forced to evacuate Jack Trice Stadium. The lightning never let up, and around 10:00 p.m. the game was called.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The University of Iowa rolled past Northern Illinois 33-7 in their season opener Saturday. It was Kirk Ferentz’s record-setting 144th win at Iowa. Ferentz passed mentor Hayden Fry as Iowa’s all-time leader in wins. Fry went 143-89-6 in 20 seasons before Ferentz took over in 1999