State News

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Tuesday, April 12, 2016

MUSCATINE, IA (IRN) – A 17-year-old girl faces criminal charges in connection with damage to dozens of headstones at a cemetery in Muscatine. WQAD-TV reports approximately 50 headstones were toppled over and damaged at Greenwood Cemetery on April 3. The girl is on probation for a forgery charge. MT. PLEASANT, IA (IRN) A Henry County man who allegedly ran from the scene of an accident is now listed as missing. The Henry County Sheriff’s Office reports Justin Hay was involved in a motor vehicle crash in Mt. Pleasant on April 9, and fled from the scene on foot. His family has not heard from him since, and he is now listed as a missing person. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man is recovering from stab wounds received Monday, according to KCCI-TV. Police were called to a residence just west of Drake University where they found 22-year-old Antonio Garrett being treated by medics as well as a pool of blood on the stairs, in the kitchen and dining room. A witness reported Garrett and 19-year-old Nykouth Moang were arguing over alcohol when “she stabbed me” was heard. The witness walked into the room to find Garrett on his back and Moang on top of him. Moang grabbed her 6-month-old son and fled. MAHASKA COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Public Safety released the name of the victim who was killed in Mahaska County on Thursday. 24-year-old Courtney Moore, of What Cheer, was struck by a car in Barnes City. The person driving the vehicle has been identified as 26-year-old Trenton Garber, of Montezuma. Authorities say Garber is the victim’s ex-boyfriend. WATKINS, IA (IRN) – One person was killed and two others were injured after a high-speed chase ended with a crash. KWWL-TV reports authorities in Linn County say they tried pulling over the car for a traffic violation south of Palo. The driver failed to pull over, leading deputies on a chase which ended when the driver struck a tree. Dead is 32-year-old David Janish of Cedar Rapids. Two passengers were hospitalized. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police say two people have only minor injuries after a suspect crashed into them during a high-speed chase. KCCI-TV reports it started around 1 a.m. when an officer pulled a vehicle over for a routine traffic stop. While the officer was running the driver’s information, the car took off. Police pursued the car westbound on I-235 at speeds of 90 mph. The suspect exited the freeway, crashed into a car and fled on foot. Police know who he is. LEXINGTON, KY (IRN) – An Iowa-owned horse is currently in the top five of the point earners leading up to the Kentucky Derby, according to WHO-TV. Brody’s Cause, which is owned by Albaugh Family Stables, won the 2016 Toyota Blue Grass Stakes over the weekend at Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky. The cash prize was worth $1 million. The Kentucky Derby is May 7.


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Monday, April 11, 2016

SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – A Sioux City man is facing over a dozen charges after leading authorities on a high speed chase through Sioux City. KCAU-TV reports 22-year-old Kenneth Azure fled police reaching speeds of 80 miles per hour and at one point struck an occupied truck. He ran at least seven stop signs during the pursuit. He’s in jail. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A 45-year-old man has been imprisoned for crashing his truck into a backyard trampoline and killing a 6-year-old boy in Des Moines. KCCI-TV reports Guadalupe Villa-Guzman was given five years in prison after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter. Villa-Guzman is accused of driving over a curb and onto a Des Moines lawn June 1 last year, killing Irving Aguilar Gonzalez and injuring a 4-year-old. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police are investigating another armed robbery of a Git-N-Go store, according to WHO-TV. The latest happened just after midnight Monday across the street from Roosevelt High School. Ten robberies have taken place at several metro locations over the past few weeks. URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – A man lost control and crashed his pickup during a police pursuit overnight, according to KCCI-TV. The chase started in Johnston and ended in Urbandale. The suspect was driving up to 95 mph on residential city streets before he lost control and rolled his vehicle. Three squad cars were damaged during the chase. One was sideswiped by the suspect near Camp Dodge. DECORAH, IA (IRN) – The Decorah Police Department will be supplying extra patrols at all the city’s schools today. KCRG-TV reports an email was sent to the school Friday by a person who was mad at the curriculum at Carrie Lee Elementary School. Authorities say the way the email was phrased made the school district and the police department concerned, and they will be taking extra safety precautions. MUSCATINE, IA (IRN) – A firefighter was hurt while helping put out flames at a house fire in Muscatine Sunday. WQAD-TV reports one person was home at the time of the fire, but he was able to get out of the house safely. One firefighter was taken to a Muscatine hospital after falling from a ladder. He was treated and released. The house was a total loss. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A police chase that started in Wisconsin Sunday morning ended in Dubuque. KWWL-TV reports authorities received reports of a reckless driver, later identified as 65-year-old Randi Harris of Postville. They placed spike sticks on the road to bring her to a stop, which shredded all four of her car’s tires. Police say it appears Harris was confused. She told them she didn’t know why she didn’t stop. She was taken to a local hospital for an evaluation, and police say she won’t be facing any charges.


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Sunday, April 10, 2016

SAN ANTONIO, TX (IRN) – An airman killed in a shooting at a military base in Texas is an Iowan. KWWL-TV reports 39-year-old Lt. Col. William A. Schroeder of Ames was killed Friday at Joint Base San Antonio in an apparent murder-suicide. Schroeder, along with 41-year-old Steven Bellino, a Technical Sergeant were both were found dead in an office. Bellino is believed to be the alleged gunman. BARNES CITY, IA (IRN) – Southeastern Iowa law enforcement officials believe a pedestrian found dead on a Barnes City street died after being hit by a car. The Des Moines Register reports Mahaska county deputies found the body in the street after a 911 call. Officials have not yet released the victim’s identity. An autopsy will be performed Monday, and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation is assisting in the investigation. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – Eleven of the 12 Iowa GOP delegates chosen at the state party’s four district conventions held across the state on Saturday have pledged their support to Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, according to KCRG-TV. Cruz won the Iowa caucuses in February. Donald Trump has no apparent support. The final delegate declined to commit to any candidate on Saturday. LOS ANGELES, CA (IRN) – Iowa State forward Georges Niang was announced on Friday as the winner of the 2016 Karl Malone Award, given annually to the nation’s top power forward by the Basketball Hall of Fame. Niang’s illustrious Cyclone career now includes an individual postseason award, which is a feat no other Iowa State men’s basketball player has ever accomplished. The senior also became the first two-time All-American in school history this season.


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Saturday, April 9, 2016

WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A construction worker was sent to the hospital after a power line came down on some equipment, shocking the man. WHO-TV reports West Des Moines fire, police and EMS were dispatched to the scene on a report of an electrocution. When they arrived, crews found a large excavator between two electrical poles with electrical lines on the ground. A piece of construction equipment came in contact with power lines. The worker suffered apparent non-life-threatening injuries. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Decatur County Sheriff’s Office reports that an injured 3-month-old infant who was flown from Grand River to a Des Moines hospital has died. The child’s father, 25-year-old Joshua Russell Guill, and mother, 20-year-old Jasmin Leigh Kifer, have been charged with child endangerment causing serious injury. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A fatal fire in Cedar rapids has been ruled a homicide, according to KWWL-TV. The fire started just before 3:00 in the morning last week at a condominium. Robyn Furmanski was found in her condo where the fire is believed to have started. Neighbors say she had just retired from the Cedar Rapids School District where she had worked for 30 years. They also say she was the “heart of the condo,” and like a mother to everyone. One neighbor said she “can’t comprehend why anyone would want to kill such a kind person.” SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – A Sioux City woman who approached her husband for a kiss instead bit and tore his lower lip. KIMT-TV reports 59-year-old Carol Smith was charged with felony willful injury. The incident occurred in the couple’s Sioux City home. Smith’s husband required plastic surgery and his psychologist reports that the man now suffers from a post-traumatic stress disorder. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A West Des Moines man is celebrating nearly 50 years of volunteering for the American Heart Association. KCCI-TV reports a friend asked 89-year-old Bob Clark to help out in 1968, and he enjoyed it so much, he keeps volunteering. Clark says he has met many friends, and plans to continue to volunteer as long as he possibly can.


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Friday, April 8, 2016

A 34-year-old man from North English being held at the Washington County Jail died late Thursday night. KCII Radio reports Washington County Jail personnel found an unresponsive male, and conducted CPR until an ambulance arrived at the scene. The man was identified as Everette William Christner. The Washington County Medical Examiner pronounced Christner deceased. An autopsy will be performed by the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner in Ankeny on Monday, April 11th. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A passerby called Des Moines police to report two naked people, one covered in blood this morning. KCCI-TV reports police are investigating an assault case at a home. An identification team was called to the scene to take photos and gather evidence. At least one person was taken to a metro hospital to be checked out. Their name and condition are not yet available. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police are connecting the dots between a long list of recent robberies, according to WHO-TV. Seven gas stations, all Git n’ Go stores, have been robbed in a little under a month. Some of the stores were even hit multiple times. Now police say they believe at least some of them are connected. The discovery comes after store clerks kept giving similar descriptions for the suspect–a slender white male, likely in his 20s. MAHASKA COUNTY, IA (IRN) – An Ottumwa man is in custody after fleeing into a wooded area Thursday. KCCI-TV reports 37-year-old Elijah Utterback was found yesterday afternoon in northern Mahaska County. A Jasper County deputy and K-9 located Utterback hiding in a tree. Utterback was charged with first-degree burglary, and second-degree theft, among other charges. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – An attic fire impacted nearly two dozen people at a Dubuque apartment building Wednesday night, 16 of them children. KCRG-TV reports firefighters responded after a passerby noticed smoke coming from the building. The cause was apparently an electrical issue in the attic. The Red Cross is providing assistance to the now homeless families. OTTUMWA, IA (IRN) – A Thursday evening fire in Ottumwa destroyed a car and nearly took a house with it, according to KTVO-TV. The owner of the vehicle says that he noticed smoke coming from his vehicle as he pulled into the alley by his home. He went inside to get a fire extinguisher to put out the fire, and called 911. The fire destroyed the car, and when firefighters arrived the side of the home was in flames. The fire was quickly extinguished. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Falls family is exhausted and seemingly out of options for their four year old, Garrett Decker. KWWL-TV reports Garrett suffers from seizures nearly every day. The Deckers are asking Iowa lawmakers to approve the proposed expansion of Iowa’s Medical Marijuana Law, to allow for the availability of cannabis oil in the state. Cannabis oil has allowed many epilepsy patients to experience a seizure-free life. The Deckers see it as a chance for their son to have a more normal life. The future of the bill is in doubt in the legislature.