MITCHELLVILLE, IA (IRN) – An 85-year-old Mitchellville man was arrested Saturday on suspicion of lascivious acts with a child. KCCI-TV reports John Richard Cohoon was arrested after alleged incidents with a 10-year-old girl between December 2018 and February 2019.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The University of Iowa is reopening an inquiry into allegations that members of the university band were targets of abuse during a game at Iowa State University.
Members of the Hawkeye Marching Band alleged they were subjected to racial slurs, verbal, physical and sexual harassment and assault when the two teams met Sept. 14 at Iowa State.

EPWORTH, IA (IRN) – A fire in the Dubuque County town of Epworth destroyed an apartment and damaged multiple businesses Saturday. Two cats didn’t survive.

IOWA (IRN) – A surging Sen. Elizabeth Warren is challenging Joe Biden’s dominance in the race for the Democratic nomination, standing at 22% to the former vice president’s 20% in a new CNN/Des Moines Register/Mediacom poll of likely Iowa caucus goers. Although neither candidate holds a clear lead at this point, the new poll finds Warren and Biden well ahead of other contenders for the Democratic nomination. Sen. Bernie Sanders’ support has dipped to 11% in this poll, with South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg at 9% and Sen. Kamala Harris at 6%. Sens. Cory Booker and Amy Klobuchar each land at 3%, while Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, former Rep. Beto O’Rourke, investor Tom Steyer and businessman Andrew Yang each have the backing of 2% of likely caucus goers.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Hundreds of students and activists from throughout central Iowa gathered on the steps of the Capitol to demand action in response to climate change. Students in 150 countries were expected to skip school Friday to send a message to world leaders to act more aggressively in their response. Most of the protesters were high school or college students. Some wore yellow and black pins or T-shirts bearing the logo of the Sunrise Movement, a youth-led political action committee that focuses on climate change.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – After the Capitol protest, hundreds of students and parents marched to U.S. Rep. Cindy Axne’s office to urge her to vote for the Green New Deal. KCCI-TV reports no one was arrested.

BLAIRSTOWN, IA (IRN) – Seventy-seven years after an Iowa soldier went out on patrol, he is now home and laid to rest in the rural Benton County town of Blairstown. On November 26th, 1942, 27-year-old Laurel W. Ebert was on patrol in what is now present-day Papua New Guinea. He was with a team of eight soldiers looking to silence enemy machine gun fire. Ebert and five others on that patrol did not return. The U.S. Army was able to finally identify Ebert’s remains through a DNA match from his nephew.

WEST BRANCH, IA (IRN) – 72 people from more than 20 countries became the newest United States citizens Friday afternoon. KCRG-TV reports it was part of a naturalization ceremony at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum in West Branch. With family members and friends supporting those in the front rows of the auditorium, the new Iowans and Americans took the Oath of Allegiance becoming officially citizens.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two lanes of Interstate 235 in Des Moines were blocked this morning after a driver was injured by a brick. KCCI-TV reports a brick fell off of a truck and went through the windshield of the vehicle. The driver was able to stop on the interstate and call for help. Emergency crews were on the scene to treat the driver and clear the crash scene. The driver was able to leave in his own vehicle.

WASHINGTON, DC (IRN) – Senator Joni Ernst says bad advice from the head of the EPA is to blame for President Trump signing dozens of waivers from the Renewable Fuel Standard for oil refineries, sending demand for ethanol plummeting. The waivers have eliminated the need of more than a billion gallons of ethanol. Two Iowa refineries have already shut down. Ernst says Trump was mislead into making the decision by the EPA.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Democratic Party is proposing a change to the 2020 Iowa caucuses. They’re proposing to add satellite locations for caucusing, which would require more engagement team members, places to apply to host a satellite caucus, training of satellite participants and reporting.The party hopes these locations can provide the opportunity to caucus for those working evening shifts, Iowans with disabilities, students and more. The Iowa caucuses take place Feb. 3.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – A California man was sentenced Wednesday to 10 years in prison for intent to deliver nearly 2,000 grams of heroin in Council Bluffs. Jorge Salazar Machado, 28, told the court he’s ready to turn his life around, and is focused on his faith and is ready for additional drug treatment.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Cedar Rapids police have received multiple calls this month about a naked man riding a bike on a trail near Cedar Lake. KCRG-TV reports police have increased patrols around lake, but haven’t been able to find the man.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A former Creative Visions employee convicted of trying to entice a minor was sentenced Wednesday. WHO-TV reports Akil Jabbar was sentenced to a maximum of 15 years in prison. Jabbar was found guilty of enticing a minor after he planned to meet with an underage girl for sex and provide her with drugs last November. Jabbar worked as a victim advocate at Creative Visions in Des Moines, an organization geared toward helping at-risk youth, despite having a lengthy criminal record.

IOWA (IRN) – More than 200 Iowa scientists have endorsed the ninth annual Iowa Climate Statement. The Center for Global & Regional Environmental Research at the University of Iowa, released a report Wednesday endorsed by 216 scientists and researchers from 38 Iowa colleges and universities, which said that, by 2050, the number of days in which Iowa experiences 90-degree temperatures will triple.

POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Pottawattamie County issued emergency notifications Wednesday for the northwest part of the county due to two reported levee breaches along the Missouri River. KETV reports numerous roads were closed.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines is being considered as a site for a USL Championship soccer club that could launch by 2022, contingent upon the construction of a multi-million-dollar, soccer-specific stadium near downtown. The Des Moines Register reports Kyle Krause, head of Kum & Go, hopes to build a $60 million stadium on the southern edge of downtown.