AMES, IA (IRN) – The Ames’ fire department is taking some heat for trying to increase diversity on its staff. WHO-TV reports the department announced plans to scale back its standard fitness test. The department is hoping the change brings in more recruits — specifically women and minorities. The Iowa Professional Fire Fighters Organization called the move into question. The group says it supports diversity, but is concerned about changing hiring standards. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A man is accused of shooting another man in a Waterloo Kwik Star parking lot yesterday. KWWL-TV reports Daytrell Pendleton is accused of shooting the other man multiple times. An off-duty deputy saw Pendleton get out of his truck with a shotgun and fire at the victim, who was standing near, or sitting in, his truck. He was hit in the elbow, hand, hip and stomach. The off-duty deputy arrested Pendleton at the scene. BUFFALO, IA – A body was pulled from the Mississippi River in the Scott County town of Buffalo this morning. WQAD-TV reports a caller reported the body, and the Buffalo Fire Department and Scott County Sheriff’s Deputies responded and pulled the body from the river. The investigation is continuing. COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – A 22-year-old Council Bluffs man has been given 10 years in prison for trying to kidnap a girl near her elementary school. KMTV reports that Nathan Busse pled guilty Thursday to child stealing after prosecutors dropped a kidnapping charge. Busse grabbed the girl in January 2013 near Edison Elementary School and forced her to walk with him. She struggled and broke away. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – An Ames man was arrested and charged Wednesday with carrying a handgun on school grounds, according to KCCI-TV. Paul Smiley-Oyen was driving a charter bus heading for Valley High School to pick up band students. He began tailgating a car, honking his horn and flashing his lights. He was tailgating an on-duty Des Moines police captain in a city vehicle. The officer followed him to the high school, approached the bus, and saw Smiley-Oyen was holding a handgun. He was arrested and faces felony charges. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Floyd County judge is under fire for banning a woman from getting pregnant, according to WHO-TV. Twenty-four-year-old Stephanie Fatland was charged with child endangerment last year. In court, she opted for a plea deal from Judge James Drew. The agreement stipulated Fatland not get pregnant. The Iowa Court of Appeals overturned the ban. ALTOONA, IA (IRN) – Federal officials are revoking a central Iowa casino’s nonprofit status. The Des Moines Register reports the Internal Revenue Service announced Thursday that Prairie Meadows, in Altoona, should lose its tax-exempt status, following an 18-month audit. The casino plans to appeal the decision. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Christians, Jews and atheists are working together to remove graffiti from the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Waterloo, according to KCRG-TV. Police are reviewing surveillance footage to try to figure out who drew crosses and wrote the words “Jesus Saves” on the synagogue. Officials are calling the vandalism a “hate crime.” Volunteers say it’s important to stand together, as one community.

POLK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Polk County Sheriff’s Office detectives have made one arrest in the Evolution Night Club Shooting. Detectives arrested 27-year-old Mykael Maggett of Windsor Heights. Maggett was identified on surveillance video discharging a handgun into a crowd. He was charged with Assault while displaying a Dangerous Weapon and Intimidation with a Dangerous Weapon; he has since posted bond and was released from jail. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man reported a burglary Wednesday that happened while he was out working in his yard. KCCI-TV reports the homeowner was in the backyard and when he came back around the house he saw his truck was missing. Inside the garage, tools including a chain saw, cordless drill, and bag of tools had been taken. Next, he spotted the side door to his house standing wide open. Inside the home, keys including the pickup truck’s were missing from the TV stand. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A man was shot in the torso overnight on the east side of Des Moines, according to KCCI-TV. It happened just after 3:30 a.m. at the Parkside East Apartments. People inside the apartments called 911 after hearing gunfire. Police found one man who had been shot in the torso. He was hospitalized and is expected to survive. No one has been arrested. OSKALOOSA, IA (IRN) – A woman found a cat in a sealed plastic tote near the city brush dump in Oskaloosa on May 5th. The woman contacted the Oskaloosa Police Department and the cat was taken to a shelter. The Humane Society of the United States is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Police are investigating a possible hate crime against a Waterloo religious community, according to KWWL-TV. Vandals defaced the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Waterloo, Tuesday evening by painting “Jesus Saves” and two crosses on the building. Synagogue leader Erin Maidan says it’s a hate crime because the implication is that Jews are going to burn in hell for their beliefs. ALTOONA, IA (IRN) – A woman who left her three children alone in an Altoona hotel room is back in jail after Des Moines police re-arrested her for missing court hearings. KCCI-TV reports 23-year-old Jeorkan Alvarado-Morales was arrested on child endangerment charges in December after police found her three children, ages 4, 2, and 1, alone inside a Quality Inn hotel room. The children were crying, which caught the attention of the hotel clerk. Alvarado-Morales had left her children to go to Prairie Meadows Casino. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines woman who died just days after Christmas last year was just one semester away from graduating from the University of Iowa. WHO-TV reports she was honored Wednesday and received a degree posthumously. Nicole Underwood was Chicago-bound on a bus to see her boyfriend when the bus crashed. Nicole’s family is raising money to endow a scholarship in her name. She had planned to be a social worker. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – Eleanor Roosevelt Middle School students in Dubuque have published their fourth annual Miracle Book, according to KCRG-TV. Authored by six graders, the book is full of poems the students wrote about their lives. The students sold advertisements in the book and are giving the money to the Iowa Children’s Miracle Network. The book has already raised over $400, and the children hope to raise more through book sales.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – UnityPoint Health-Allen Hospital in Waterloo is reviewing a breach of patient information which occurred over about seven years. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports the hospital is notifying approximately 1,600 patients that a former employee inappropriately accessed their personal information in the hospital’s electronic medical record. WINNESHIEK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – It’s official. North Winneshiek School will close its doors and consolidate with the Decorah School District in the 2019-2020 School Year, according to KCRG-TV. The School Board formally approved the decision Monday during their regular meeting. The school board also approved or looked at other cost savings measures. WAUKEE, IA (IRN) – Waukee released new population numbers today showing the city has added more than 4,000 people since 2010. KCCI-TV reports a special census just conducted showed over 4,000 new residents pushing the city’s population to nearly 18,000. City officials said that equals a 30% increase in residential growth since 2010. Dallas County is the fastest growing county in Iowa and ranks 13th in the nation. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – The FBI is searching for a Dubuque man in connection to a methamphetamine raid carried out across the state last week called Operation Ice Pirates. KCRG-TV reports Dennis Sharkey II is wanted on a federal arrest warrant. Officers arrested nine other people and served 29 search warrants on Thursday, with the help of about 250 officers, including nine SWAT teams. They seized more than six pounds of meth, valued at just over $270,000, and dismantled five meth labs. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A new study out of Iowa City finds that children living or attending school near agricultural fields are at the greatest risk for pesticides linked to cancer and brain development. KWWL-TV reports the research shows links between pesticides used in food production and cancers such as leukemia and brain tumors as well as developmental disorders and autism. WEBSTER COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Residents of two Iowa counties say flies are taking over this spring in Webster and Wright counties. KCCI-TV reports residents say the infestation is driving them crazy. Sides of houses are covered, and it’s almost impossible to take a drink of pop without getting a mouthful of flies. Residents point the finger at a local chicken farm. The DNR and county health departments have been contacted, but say they can’t do anything. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A West Des Moines woman is crediting a neighbor with saving her life, according to WHO-TV. Blake Havard heard screaming outside of his house Friday night, and found a woman who had just returned from the store being attacked. The man had her on the ground, and was trying to rob her. When Havard arrived, the man fled. He helped the woman up, and she’s calling him her “guardian angel.” Havard says he was glad that he heard her–he’s almost deaf.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa City man is facing numerous charges after police found an active meth lab in his backpack, according to KGAN-TV. Police responded to a report of a man looking inside vehicles Monday. They confronted 32-year-old Nicholas Rotter, who resisted arrest, injuring two officers as they took him to the ground. Rotter also sustained injuries to his head and face. Police found a meth lab, filled syringes, and various other drugs in his backpack. He’s in jail. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A Davenport woman allegedly gave birth in a University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics bathroom Sunday, then tried to flush the baby down the toilet because she thought it was stillborn. WQAD-TV reports 22-year-old Ashley Hautzenrader said she didn’t know she was pregnant when she entered the restroom, and thought the baby was dead. She tried flushing the baby down the toilet, but then put the baby in a pillowcase, which she placed in the trash can. An employee found the baby. Its condition is unknown. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two people were injured when the vehicle they were riding in crashed into a Des Moines fire station Sunday. The Des Moines Register reports the vehicle jumped the curb in front of Fire Station 4 and crashed into the station’s garage doors. One passenger was seriously injured and transported to a hospital. The vehicle’s driver was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, and a third passenger fled from the scene before officers arrived. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Police are investigating a robbery at a credit union in Des Moines, according to WHO-TV. Police say just before noon yesterday two armed men entered the Financial Plus Credit Union west of downtown, demanded money, and fled. The same credit union was robbed on April 19 by a man in a Halloween mask. DUNKERTON, IA (IRN) – The former police chief of the northeastern Iowa town of Dunkerton has pled guilty to misusing city money. Last year Tim Schultz was arrested and charged with theft. It came after the state auditor’s office said Schultz bought more than $2,500 in gas when he was not on duty. Schultz resigned from his position as police chief in 2014 as the investigation was underway to determine whether he used a city credit card improperly. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A century-old former bank in Des Moines has been turned into a homeless shelter for young adults, according to KCCI-TV. The Iowa State Bank Building has transformed from a structure that sat vacant for decades into a state-of-the-art facility. The plan is for homeless youth ages 16 to 22 to be able to get a meal, shower, and resources necessary to obtain a job or enroll in school. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids fifth grader is tackling the legislature in order to save his school’s Spanish program. KCRG-TV reports when 11-year-old Ben Drzycimski (driz-ih-zihm-SKEE) learned elementary spanish was being cut from the Cedar Rapids school district to save money, he knew he had to take action. He’s collecting signatures for a petition to take to the Iowa State Legislature. He’s not blaming the school district for the cuts–he’s blaming the legislature for not adequately funding public schools.

JOHNSON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Alexander Kozak, the man who was convicted of killing 20-year-old Andrea Farrington in the Coral Ridge Mall, has filed a motion for a new trial, according to KCCI-TV. Kozak was convicted April 26th of first-degree murder. He is scheduled to be sentenced June 6th in Johnson County. A conviction of first-degree murder in the state of Iowa carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole. URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – Urbandale police are investigating a report of a drive-by shooting shortly after noon today, according to KCCI-TV. Minor injuries to one younger adult male was reported. The investigation is ongoing. MONROE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A Bloomfield man died in a car and minivan head-on crash Saturday. The Iowa State Patrol reports a car driven by 47-year-old Mark Garretson of Bloomfield was traveling north on Highway 5 in Monroe County and a minivan driven by 69-year-old Marlyn Copeland of Ottumwa, was driving south. The minivan entered the northbound lanes and hit the car head-on. Copeland was hurt in the crash as well as two children. They were hospitalized. COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – Authorities evacuated the federal building in Council Bluffs after reports of an odor of natural gas this morning, according to KETV. Crews responded, checked out the building, and cleared everyone to go back inside. LOUISA COUNTY, IA (IRN) – One person was killed in a single-vehicle crash in rural Louisa County Saturday morning, according to the Iowa State Patrol. 24-year-old Ruger Dean told troopers he swerved to avoid hitting a deer in the roadway, lost control, and the vehicle flipped. The passenger, 24-year-old Alexandria Edwards of Columbus Junction, was pronounced dead at the scene. JOHNSON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids man is dead after losing control of his vehicle Sunday morning. KWWL-TV reports 26-year-old Rashad Carrington was driving northbound on I-380 when he lost control. His vehicle struck a guardrail, and came to a rest in a ditch. Carrington was a starting point guard and team leader for the Cedar Valley CourtKings, a minor league basketball team. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Police in Des Moines are investigating a shooting that occurred on Sunday night on the east side of the city. WHO-TV reports that a man was shot in the stomach and is now in the hospital in stable condition. Police say they’ve made arrests. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The families of about 60 Iowa Army National Guard soldiers said goodbye Sunday as the 185th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, based out of Camp Dodge, is headed into a yearlong deployment in Afghanistan. KCCI-TV reports the Mother’s Day departure was an emotional one, not only for the soldiers, but also for the over 1,000 friends, family, and other well-wishers attending the send-off ceremony.