Iowa Radio News

OSKALOOSA – An Oskaloosa woman faces a criminal charge after attempting to sell a baby. KCRG-TV reports 33-year-old Tiffany Smith is accused of purchase or sale of an individual. Court documents accuse Smith of giving a baby to a family member of a potential buyer in August of 2025. That person had the baby for two hours when Smith demanded $10,000 or the child back. DES MOINES – Iowa’s first certified resource for sexual assault care is opening its first location. The S.A.F.E. center will be a resource tailored to victims of sexual-based crimes. An event was held this week to highlight blueprints of the facility that will be funded through donations. Beyond medical care resources, law enforcement plan on working with patients at their request. DES MOINES – Iowa State Senator Bill Dotzler is retiring from the Iowa Legislature. KCCI-TV reports he served for 30 years in a district that includes parts of Waterloo. He will serve out the remainder of this term before the November mid-term elections.

DES MOINES – The former Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent has now officially pleaded guilty to both charges against him. Fifty-five year old Ian Andre Roberts entered guilty pleas to False Statement for Employment and Illegal Alien in Possession of a Firearm. According to public court documents, Roberts falsely stated that he was a United States citizen on employment paperwork related to his position at the Des Moines Public Schools in June 2023. On September 26, 2025, Roberts knowingly possessed a loaded Glock pistol in his vehicle while knowing that he was unlawfully present in the United States. Roberts is scheduled to be sentenced on May 29th and faces up to 15 years in prison on the firearms charge and up to five years in prison on the false statements charge. CARROLL COUNTY – A Lanesboro man has been arrested in connection to a man who went missing in 2020. This week, 33-year-old Albert John Wolfe was arrested and charged with Murder in the First Degree for the death of 26-year-old Christian Balke-Thompson. The arrest stemmed from an extensive investigation conducted by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, and Iowa Attorney General’s Office Cold Case Unit. Balke-Thompson has still not been found. IOWA – Extremely cold air presents danger to several Iowans today. Wind chill values as low as 40 below zero are expected to impact the northern part of the state until Saturday morning, and arctic air will settle into the region through at least Sunday night. Those with outdoor plans are reminded to limit direct exposure, as frostbite can occur in as little as 15 minutes without precautions.

IOWA – A strong cold front will surge across Iowa this evening and bring an Arctic airmass to Iowa through at least Saturday. According to the National Weather Service, the coldest conditions will come from late tonight through Friday morning, when temperatures will fall below zero statewide. Wind chill values will range locally from near 30 below southwest to near 40 below, resulting in very dangerous conditions with frostbite to exposed skin resulting in as little as 10 minutes. IOWA – President Donald Trump is returning to Iowa next week. The Des Moines Register reports the president is expected to speak about the economy and energy on January 27th. Trump was last in Iowa on July 3rd, 2025, to kick off the America 250 celebration. The tour for Trump is expected ahead of the upcoming Midterm elections, and Iowa is expected to have competitive elections in two congressional districts held by incumbent Republicans Zach Nunn and Mariannette Miller-Meeks. DES MOINES – The former Superintendent of the Des Moines Public Schools arrested by federal immigration officers has signed a plea agreement. WHO-13 reports Ian Roberts has been an inmate at the U.S. Marshals Service in the Polk County jail. Robert signed a 15-page plea agreement late last week. He was arrested in September of 2025. DES MOINES – Iowa House Republicans unveiled their property tax proposal. KCCI-TV reports House Study Bill 596 involves a revenue cap of two percent for local governments and a tax exemption for all homeowners. House Democrats have proposed direct reimbursements to taxpayers and renters from the taxpayer relief fund, and to cap growth at four percent annually.

DES MOINES – Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Klimesh introduced legislation on Tuesday related to property rights and eminent domain. Iowa Capital Dispatch reports one measure allows hazardous liquid pipeline operators to choose alternative routes to avoid eminent domain, and the other places a tax on sequestered carbon dioxide. The senate version is different from proposals in the Iowa House that would ban carbon sequestration pipelines from using eminent domain outright. IOWA – A mix of winter weather impacts are set to arrive today across the state. Wind gusts above 40 MPH today statewide will be coupled with snow for many along and north of Highway 20 in northern Iowa, creating travel impacts there. Much colder air is set to follow starting Thursday night, with air temperatures well below zero expected and a range of wind chills between 20 to 40 below zero possible on Friday. That frigid air is expected to settle in through at least Sunday morning, according to the National Weather Service. CEDAR RAPIDS – The Cedar Rapids School Board voted to make nearly $13 million in budget cuts in the upcoming fiscal year. Iowa Public Radio reports that the Cedar Rapids Community School District is currently running a $4 million per year deficit, which is expected to grow to $12 million due to declining enrollment. The move includes reducing 33 positions through attrition and freezing administrator pay for one year.

BLACK HAWK COUNTY – Three people died in a head-on collision along Interstate 380 in Black Hawk County on Monday afternoon. The Iowa State Patrol reports a Ford F-150 driven by 63-year-old Thomas Sidler of Alabama crossed into the opposite lanes of traffic. It collided with a Toyota driven by 68-year-old Judy Fisher of Cedar Rapids. Both died in a head on collision, as did a passenger in second vehicle, identified as 45-year-old Jessica Fisher. DES MOINES – Lawmakers are considering a bill to change how some prescription drugs are dispensed. KCCI-TV reports House File 2056 would make it easier for Iowans to receive ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine. Both were in the center of debate in the year that followed the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Food and Drug Administration reports neither are effective in treating the illness, but have other uses. The proposed bill would allow the state medical director to essentially give a prescipition to all Iowans. IOWA – Iowa’s private schools have seen a continued increase in students, largely driven by Education Savings Accounts first approved in 2023. The Des Moines Register reports that Catholic schools grew by three percent, with private enrollment jumping by six percent from the October enrollment count deadline for the current academic year. Public school enrollment has dipped by 1%, or nearly 5,000 students.