Category: State News

FORT MADISON, IA (IRN) – A man, his wife, and their two children were all injured after he fell asleep while driving and crashed into another car in rural Fort Madison Thursday. WQAD-TV reports the man fell asleep at the wheel of his Honda Pilot and drove into the median, went airborne, and hit a car on the opposite side of the highway. The impact ejected one of the children from the car, resulting in major injuries. Everyone was wearing seatbelts. No one in the oncoming car was injured.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A maintenance worker for a Waterloo apartment complex has died after he was beaten last week and left with a broken neck. KCRG-TV reports Johannes Rodenburgh, 72, died Tuesday. Martavis Wise, 27, faces second degree murder charges. Wise allegedly punched and kicked Rodenburgh repeatedly, knocking him down and a slamming a bicycle on top of him.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A chase through Des Moines yesterday may have put a wanted man behind bars. WHO-TV reports the chase started when a deputy spotted a vehicle with license plates stolen in Sioux City. The driver refused to stop, leading police on a pursuit that ended on the east side of Des Moines. The van was stolen in Florida.

IOWA (IRN) – Nitrogen pollution flowing out of Iowa to the Gulf of Mexico has grown by close to 50 percent over nearly two decades. The Des Moines Register reports a new University of Iowa study shows the voluntary Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy isn’t working. The pollutants reduce oxygen in the gulf, causing a “dead zone” that threatens the Gulf’s seafood industry. Farming is the source of most of the pollution, although urban wastewater and industrial operations contribute as well.

STORY COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Nearly one-third of rest stops along Iowa interstate highways could be closing. The Iowa Department of Transportation is asking for public input on the issue. Officials say the specific areas they want to close are not being used or are too close to other stops. The agency is also looking to get rid of all 16 parking-only areas, which are usually used by semitractor-trailer drivers.

DOON, IA (IRN) – Oil is leaking out of a Burlington, Northern, and Santa Fe train that derailed just south of the town of Doon in northwest Iowa this morning, and is flowing into the Rock River. The Sioux City Journal reports no one was injured in the 31-car crude oil train derailment.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Safety says it is looking into a test Amber Alert message that was sent out Thursday afternoon. They didn’t send the alert, and are working with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children to see what triggered the test alert.

MANCHESTER, IA (IRN) – Frozen assets limited a Manchester’s man’s ability to defend himself at trial for shooting his girlfriend, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled. KCRG-TV reports the court granted Robert Krogmann, now 60 years-old, a new trial for shooting his then girlfriend three times in 2009. Before the trial, the prosecution requested to freeze Krogmann’s roughly $3 million in assets and a judge granted it. The Supreme Court ruled the asset freeze did not have any legal basis.

MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – The Mason City Police Department is investigating a case of shots fired. KIMT-TV reports the incident involved shots being fired from one vehicle at another vehicle last night.

WASHINGTON, DC (IRN) – The House of Representatives narrowly approved a five-year farm bill Thursday, according to CNN. The vote was 213-211. Most Republicans favored the bill, while Democrats rejected it. The vast majority of the bill’s funding addresses food stamps, more formally known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The bill adds more work and training requirements for those who receive benefits — the main reason why Democrats unanimously opposed the measure.

LINN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in south Florida arrived in eastern Iowa Thursday. KCRG-TV reports it was part of the nationwide March for Our Lives Road to Change Summer Tour. The students are survivors of the February 14 massacre at their high school in Parkland which took the lives of 17 people and injured several others. The group favors stronger gun control.

LINN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A group of teenagers gathered Thursday in Cedar Rapids to show that not all people their age want stricter gun laws. KCCI-TV reports the students say they don’t support any additional forms of gun control because it’s unconstitutional. One Marion High School student says the Second Amendment is the country’s most important amendment because it’s “the backbone of the Constitution.”

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Court of Appeals is affirming a district court’s denial of Mark Becker’s application for post-conviction relief. KWWL-TV reports Mark Becker was found guilty of the first-degree murder in the 2009 death of Aplington-Parkersburg teacher and head football coach Ed Thomas. Becker claims his legal team was ineffective for several reasons, including they failed to file for a motion of a change of venue due to pretrial publicity. The appeals court disagrees, saying Becker’s legal counsel was effective.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Several residents of a twelve-unit apartment building in Cedar Rapids jumped from second story windows to escape a fire in Cedar Rapids yesterday. KCRG-TV reports six or seven people stretched out a blanket to help break the fall of those jumping. All injuries were minor, and officials are investigating the cause of the fire.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Hundreds of Des Moines residents could be missing their mail after someone broke into a mail truck. KCCI-TV reports the the thief or thieves broke into a locked mail truck Monday morning stealing an estimated 600-700 letters, small packages and personal items. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is offering a $2,500 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect or suspects involved in the break-in. The crime is punishable by up to five years in prison.

IOWA (IRN) – Authorities are warning Iowans to avoid being taken by a scam that has been making its way across the state. The scammers are with a group called Warrior Box Marketing, and they come knocking at your door and say they are seeking donations for soldiers. Don’t be fooled. It’s a scam.

IOWA (IRN) – Seven tornadoes touched down yesterday in Iowa as a tornado watch covered more than a third of the state. The National Weather Service reports tornadoes were confirmed north of Perry in Dallas County, near Paton and Scranton in Greene County, near New Providence and Hubbard in Hardin County, and two between Chillicothe and Eddyville in Mahaska and Wapello counties. There were no reports of injuries.

IOWA (IRN) – Minimum wage workers cannot afford a two-bedroom apartment anywhere in Iowa, according to a new report from the National Low Income Housing Coalition. The Des Moines Register reports to afford a “modest” two-bedroom apartment renting at $781 a month, a full-time Iowa worker would need to earn at least $15.01 an hour. That’s more than double Iowa’s minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. Workers in Iowa’s metro areas need to earn even more.

OTTUMWA, IA (IRN) – An Ottumwa woman with a history of theft convictions is accused of shoplifting again at Walmart. KTVO-TV reports the woman took several items off the shelves, including a bottle of rum, a bottle of soda, and three laptops. When searched, police also found several clear plastic baggies containing methamphetamine.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa Republicans are split on President Donald Trump’s zero-tolerance policy that places children of suspected undocumented immigrants in detention centers, away from their families. Congressman Steve King praised the policy, saying there is nothing cruel about it. Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Jeff Kaufmann disagrees, saying the policy is cruel and unfair, while Governor Kim Reynolds calls Trump’s policy “horrific.”

FAYETTEVILLE, AR (IRN) – A former Ankeny schools superintendent was fired Monday from an Arkansas district after claims of sexual harassment emerged. The Des Moines Register reports
Matthew Wendt was terminated from the Fayetteville schools for his alleged treatment of a female employee, which he denied. An employee said that she was coerced into having sex with Wendt, who threatened her job and sent harassing text messages in an attempt to continue their relationship.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The storefront of a Des Moines Casey’s General Store sustained significant damage Tuesday after a car crashed into the building. KCCI-TV reports a driver hit the gas pedal instead of the brake, causing the vehicle to crash into the Casey’s. The driver suffered minor injuries, and nobody inside the store was hurt.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – The remains of an Army Sergeant reported missing in action during the Korean War nearly 68-years-ago have been returned to his family in Iowa. Sgt. Donald Baker was buried with full military honors in Cedar Rapids yesterday.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An athlete at the University of Iowa is recovering after he was shot in the knee. KWWL-TV reports Iowa City police responded to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics this morning on a report of a person with a gunshot wound. The victim is Samuel Paul Stoll, 22, of Iowa City, and is being treated for non-life threatening injuries. Several people were in a home when one person fired a gun, accidentally striking Stoll. Stoll is a wrestler at the University of Iowa. He’s an All-American and placed 5th at the NCAA championship last year.

BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – A basement fire in Burlington was caused by acetone flumes and a natural gas water heater. KWQC-TV reports a contractor was working in the basement using acetone to remove old vinyl flooring. The fumes from the acetone were ignited by the natural gas water heater in a nearby room. The cause of the fire is considered accidental.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man is behind bars after police say he raped a 74-year-old woman in a senior assisted living home. KCCI-TV reports the victim says Lonnie Jackson, 45, raped her because she wouldn’t give him money. Jackson is in Polk County Jail on charges including sex abuse, robbery, burglary and unauthorized use of credit cards.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids man who sold methamphetamine from his home near Wilson Middle School was sentenced to 17 years in prison. KCRG-TV reports after serving a search warrant at the home of 26-year-old Daniel Wayne Melsha, police found over 70 grams of “ice” methamphetamine and 41 guns. Released pending trial, Melsha cut off his GPS-monitoring bracelet, and was later found hiding in a camper parked inside a barn.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines woman found passed out at home Sunday is accused of regularly drugging her children so they sleep during the day. WQAD-TV reports 35-year-old Morgan Brown-Edmundson is charged with three counts of child endangerment. After neighbors found her 8-year-old son wandering the streets in a lethargic condition, police entered the home and took Brown-Edmundson and three children to the hospital for treatment. When asked how much alcohol she had drank that day, she replied, “more than enough and over the limit.”

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines firefighters are asking for donations of fans to help residents without air conditioners beat the heat. WHO-TV reports the department collects fans for Impact Iowa, which hands them out to people struggling to stay cool. They have received 49 fans so far this summer; and one woman alone dropped off 20. New fans can be dropped off at any of the 10 fire stations in Des Moines.