Category: State News

WAUKEE, IA (IRN) – Two Des Moines police officers were killed in the line of duty Saturday morning while transporting a prisoner. The prisoner and the driver of the second vehicle were also killed. The crash happened on I-80 near the Waukee at 12:40 a.m. The officers were returning a prisoner from Council Bluffs to Des Moines when they were struck head-on by a vehicle driving the wrong way on the interstate. Officers Susan Farrell and Carlos Puente-Morales died in the crash. The names of others involved are being withheld until families can be notified.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa City hospital is warning patients that some of their personal information may have been accessed through a computer virus. The Iowa City Press-Citizen reports an investigation revealed that a computer virus that is designed to capture personal data had infected some computers in January at Mercy Iowa City and Mercy Clinics.

CHICAGO, IL (IRN) – The Cyclones’ season is officially over after a double-digit deficit in the second half was too much to overcome on Friday night. No. 4 seed Iowa State fell behind early and ultimately lost to No. 1 seed Virginia by a score of 84-71 at the United Center in Chicago.

CENTER POINT, IA (IRN) – Center Point’s library is shutting down for three weeks after regular hours today, according to KCRG-TV. But that’s good news for the small Linn County community, because it means a $2.8 million expansion project is finished enough to begin a moving-in process. Library leaders have an unusual request for patrons. To help the staff move fewer items, they’re asking people to check out a greater-than-normal number of books and movies and keep them for up to a month.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A flock of wild turkeys is terrorizing the residents of a Des Moines neighborhood and damaging cars in the area. KCCI-TV reports on Friday two wild turkeys attacked Dottie Bauer’s car. Bauer said she then saw them attack three other cars, trying to keep anyone from getting past them. Her car has deep scratches caused by the turkeys. On Thursday, a woman reported to police she was trapped in her car and couldn’t get out because the turkeys were attacking it.

BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – A Burlington man accused of using a machete and a skateboard to attack his girlfriend has been charged with kidnapping. The Hawk Eye reports 20-year-old Dakota Poland confined or moved the girl without her consent, intending to harm her with a dangerous weapon. Poland also has been charged with willful injury and domestic abuse.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa residents with Medicaid health coverage won’t be able to routinely use the Mayo Clinic when the state shifts the $4 billion program to private management next week. The Des Moines Register reports that the three managed-care companies that will run the state’s Medicaid program told lawmakers this week that they haven’t been able to negotiate contracts with Mayo’s well-known hospital system, located just across the border in Rochester, Minnesota.

MOULTON, IA (IRN) – A southeast Iowa building collapsed Wednesday night with patrons inside. KTVO-TV reports the Moulton Fire Department got a call around 10:30 p.m. that the roof of the Two Cycles bar in Moulton had collapsed, causing most of the building to crumble. There were approximately six people inside at the time, but they were able to escape before the building completely collapsed. The cause is unknown, but bar patrons reported hearing water running before the collapse.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – Towns along the Mississippi River are preparing for flooding, according to WQAD-TV. The river is expected to reach a depth of 15 feet by Saturday evening. On Monday the river is forecast to reach 16 feet and crest at 16.3 feet on Wednesday. Rock Island and Davenport are preparing with pumps, gate walls and sandbags.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa legislators have approved a bill that would allow people to carry loaded firearms while they operate an ATV or snowmobile, and now it’s up to Gov. Branstad whether it will become law. WHO-TV reports the bill would allow landowners on their own property to carry loaded firearms and would require that any shooting be done after getting off of the vehicle. For non-landowners, shotguns or rifles would have to be transported in a case.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – The city of Waterloo has reached a settlement with federal officials over its failure to maintain accessible bus benches. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that Waterloo City Council members voted unanimously Monday to approve an agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice based on complaints that many of the city’s 130 public bus benches have failed to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards. Local riders filed a complaint with the Justice Department three years ago.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Drake Relays unveiled another world-class field including Relays fan favorite Lolo Jones in the Rio Olympic Games Preview 100-meter hurdles. KCCI-TV reports the race will feature the Nos. 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 8 hurdlers in the world.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A Davenport man is protesting a child support law that requires him to pay for another man’s child, according to WQAD-TV. Joe Vandusen thought it was a joke when he received a certified letter from the Iowa Department of Human Resources last month. The child was recently born to his long estranged wife, and there’s no way it is his. Vandusen says “We’ve had no contact whatsoever in 16 or 17 years, and the child just turned one year old.” The state says since they are still married, he had better pay up.

DES MOINES, IA – A wanted “violent” felon was injured Thursday in a crash at the end of a police pursuit, according to KCCI-TV. The crash happened near Lutheran Medical Center in Des Moines. The man being chased suffered a head wound in the crash when the van he was driving hit a tree. Police say Brian Palm was treated and then taken to the Polk County Jail.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – Three Davenport men are suspected of committing at least three business robberies in less than 24 hours, according to WQAD-TV. Police say the same mode of operation was involved in each of the robberies: one person was a lookout at the door while the others went inside and committed the robbery, and that the suspects used the ruse of a purchase to get the clerk to open the cash register each time. All three men are in the Scott County Jail

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A former University of Iowa student has admitted to killing his girlfriend in September of 2014. KCRG-TV reports 20-year-old Xiangnan Li admitted to killing Tong Shao, an Iowa State student, during his trial in China. Shao’s father has called on Li to get the death penalty. In a meeting with Li’s family, Shao’s father reportedly said the family begged for forgiveness and offered to pay him off for his daughter’s death. Police found Tong Shao’s body in the trunk of her car in Iowa City. She died of strangulation.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A six week long initiative to reduce crime was successful in getting more than 50 of the most violent fugitives off the streets of northern Iowa. KWWL-TV reports the U.S. Marshals Service has conducted a high-impact national fugitive apprehension initiative focusing on the country’s most violent offenders. This initiative resulted in the arrest of more than 50 fugitives, gang members, sex offenders and violent criminals in the Northern District of Iowa.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A confrontation between an Iowa lawmaker and an Iowa mother caught on video has gone viral on the web, according to KCCI-TV. In the video, State Rep. Dean Fisher, a Republican from Tama, disagrees with Quincy Grittmann, telling her to go out of state to get help for her son who suffers from a debilitating seizure disorder. The Grittman family lived for a year in Colorado where medical cannabis helped her 5-year-old son go from 5-7 seizures a day to zero. The representative tells her she needs to do more as a parent, and “If it (were) my kid, I would move to Colorado.”

NORWALK, IA (IRN) – A stray kangaroo was captured by police after it was spotted hopping outside City Hall in Norwalk on Tuesday night. WHO-TV reports the kangaroo was turned over to the Iowa DNR. The kangaroo is a pet who escaped from its pen.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – 21 people were arrested and charged in a prostitution sting in the Des Moines metro last week, according to KCCI-TV. The Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force led the effort. It was conducted mainly in Dallas County. The Task Force said it plans to continue the random prostitution stings throughout the year.

CHARLES CITY, IA (IRN) – One person is dead after falling out of a boat while fishing Tuesday in northeast Iowa. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says 54-year-old Kevin Endelman was fishing on the Cedar River in Charles City when the incident happened. He had anchored his boat above a low-head dam but fell into the river, and went over the dam. Emergency crews pulled him from the river downstream and he was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Senate passed a bill Tuesday to allow the legal sale, use, and possession of firearm suppressors. A suppressor is a mechanical device designed to silence, muffle or suppress the sound when a weapon is fired. Suppressors are currently illegal under Iowa law although they are legal under federal law and in more than 40 other states.

EARLHAM, IA (IRN) – A worker died in an explosion Tuesday evening, according to KCCI-TV. The explosion occurred at the Martin Marietta Aggregate Earlham Quarry east of Earlham. 42-year-old Tracey Hockmeier of Winterset had been blasting rock when the accident occurred. Hockmeier was walking away from the routine blast when debris hit and killed him.

DAYTON, IA (IRN) – A Dayton man has been charged in connection with a car crash that killed two people. The Fort Dodge Messenger reports 20-year-old Colten Bills was arrested Friday and charged with two counts of vehicular homicide in the deaths of 85-year-old Velma Castenson and her son, 56-year-old David Castenson. Bills was driving a pickup truck that failed to stop at an intersection before the crash. The complaint alleges Bills was texting.

GRISWOLD, IA (IRN) – A western Iowa high school principal has resigned after being charged with operating under the influence and carrying weapons while intoxicated, according to KCRG-TV. The Griswold school board voted Monday night to accept Thomas Dunphy’s resignation. The board also accepted the resignation of schools Superintendent Dana Kunze, who said his departure is budget-based. He says the district will save money by sharing another district’s superintendent. Kunze also had an OWI last year.

CAMP DODGE, IA (IRN) – The Iowa National Guard has named its top soldier following the annual “Best Warrior” competition. 23 soldiers and non-commissioned officers competed for title of “Best Warrior” at Camp Dodge. They faced a variety of challenges, including the Army’s fitness test, weapons qualification, an obstacle course and more. This year’s winner is Specialist Dakota VanBrocklin from Dubuque.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa lawmakers have reached a compromise over how much the state should spend on additional funding for K-12 education for the upcoming fiscal year. KWWL-TV reports lawmakers from the Democratic-majority Senate and Republican-controlled House voted in a special committee today for legislation that would increase spending for K-12 schools by 2.25 percent for the next academic year. The legislation will require formal approval in both chambers before Gov. Terry Branstad can review it.

NEOLA, IA (IRN) – A high school student died and three others were hospitalized after a rollover crash in western Iowa according to KETV. The accident occurred Monday on a road between Tri-City High School and Neola. Witnesses reported that the driver lost control of the pickup and it ran into a ditch and rolled at least once. The four students were taken to Council Bluffs hospitals. One student was pronounced dead.

BIRMINGHAM, IA (IRN) – A Birmingham man missing for five weeks has been found, according to KTVO-TV. According to a family member, the body of 20-year-old Morgan Elfers was found on Sunday in Van Buren County. An autopsy has been scheduled.

WINNESHIEK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – One person has been found dead in a car just south of Calmar in Winneshiek County, according to KWWL-TV. The Winneshiek County Sheriff and the
the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation are investigating.

WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two men were injured Monday during an altercation that led to a shooting in West Des Moines. WHO-TV reports when police arrived at the home a man was found outside in the yard with a gunshot wound. The shooting suspect was inside, and authorities were able to get him to come outside. The suspect was taken into custody and transferred to a local hospital. The victim was taken to a different hospital. Police say the suspect and victim were fighting prior to the shooting.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A convenience store owner in Dubuque says he’s thankful no one was killed during an armed robbery Sunday night. Tom Thompson is the owner of the Oky-Doky Food Mart, which was one of two places involved in armed robberies late Sunday night. Police arrested 29-year-old Jeffrey Stonehocker of Dubuque in connection to the two robberies. Police also arrested 25-year-old Laci McGuire of Boone, who they believe drove the getaway car.

ANKENY, IA (IRN) – A man’s prized possession has been recovered from the ocean, according to KCCI-TV. Dave Ewing of Ankeny was swimming off Cabo San Lucas on the coast of Mexico when he realized one of his most prized possessions, a hall of fame ring, went missing in the ocean. The National Wrestling Hall of Fame presented Ewing with the ring in 2013. Ewing was a star for Iowa State in the 80’s and coached at Ankeny High School for nearly 30 years. Three men snorkeling found the ring, googled Ewing’s name, and were able to find him to return it.