Iowa Radio News

GILBERT, IA (IRN) – A Story City woman is dead after a crash in Gilbert Saturday morning. The Iowa State Patrol says a pickup driven by 68-year-old John Paulson failed to yield, crashing into another pickup truck. Passenger 68-year-old Marcia Olson died. Paulson, and the other driver, 38-year-old Michael Manke, of Nevada, and Manke’s two passengers, including a 3-year-old child from Nevada, were all injured. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A man received multiple charges after a Christmas Eve incident where he allegedly shot at a home in Dubuque, according to KCRG-TV. Earnest Jones Hunt, Jr., 18, of Dubuque was charged with attempted murder and intimidation with a dangerous weapon, among other charges. He fired a gun at a home where a woman and her two children were inside. ADEL, IA (IRN) – A single mother in Adel is without a home just days after Christmas. WHO-TV reports Adel fire and rescue crews were called out to a residential fire shortly after 7 a.m. Saturday. When they arrived, the home was fully engulfed in flames. A single mother and her pets were able to escape unharmed and no children were home at the time of the fire. The initial cause of the fire points to an electrical problem with a space heater. ORLANDO, FL (IRN) – Iowa State and Notre Dame faced off for the first time at the Camping World Bowl Saturday in Orlando, Florida. Early miscues led to a first quarter deficit the Cyclones could never overcome, losing 33-9.

MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – Mason City Schools settled a gender discrimination lawsuit filed by a former official for more $170,000. The district issued its former human resources director Jodie Anderson $31,500 in wage differential payment and $73,500 for damages, according to the Globe-Gazette. Another $70,000 was issued to cover court and attorneys’ fees. Anderson filed the lawsuit in July 2018, alleging that men employed by the district were being paid more than women. The district denies any wrongdoing. WORTH COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Three people are facing drug charges after an early-morning traffic stop in Worth County yesterday. KIMT-TV reports a K9 unit indicated the presence of narcotics in the vehicle and methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia were found. They are in jail. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Iowa City residents may end up paying a higher property tax starting this summer. KCRG-TV reports in the proposed budget for the next fiscal year, city staff suggest adding an emergency property tax. Staff says that money from those taxes will go entirely towards the city’s climate action plan. SAN DIEGO, CA (IRN) – It was a VERY happy holiday for the Iowa Hawkeye football team, who blasted #22 USC 49-24 Friday night to win the Holiday Bowl and finish the season with an impressive 10-3 record.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A weather system moving into Iowa Friday night will have an impact the entire weekend. Heavy rain, freezing rain, and snow are expected. Freezing rain, mainly across northern Iowa, is expected late Friday night into mid-morning Saturday. Unseasonably heavy rainfall with amounts of 1-2” is expected across much of central Iowa. It will be much colder by Sunday into Monday, with a light wintry mix possible. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Beaverdale couple held off a burglar with a pair of scissors and a wine glass on Christmas Day. KCCI-TV reports at approximately 8 a.m. Joseph Halbur broke into Rena and Duncan McClintock’s home. The couple woke up to their dog barking and found Halbur in their kitchen. They grabbed a wine glass and a pair of scissors and cornered him and waited for police to arrive. Halbur was arrested and released from the Polk County Jail. SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – An Omaha man faces attempted murder charges after allegedly firing shots at an Iowa State Patrol trooper in Sioux City. A trooper pulled over a vehicle Thursday and found a 27-year-old passenger had a warrant for his arrest. The man resisted and as they struggled, the trooper used a stun gun. The man ran away and during a chase he allegedly fired two shots at the pursuing trooper. The shots missed. BENTON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Emergency crews spent Thursday evening searching a pond after receiving a report of a person falling through the ice in Benton County. KCRG-TV reports a 911 caller said they saw a fisherman on the ice earlier in the day but after some time, the fisherman was no longer in the area. The fisherman’s vehicle was located nearby and a large hole was spotted in the ice. The search continues. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Record setting high temperatures on Christmas Eve brought many Iowans outside. KGAN-TV reports about 100 golfers teed up at St. Andrews Golf Club on Christmas Eve. One man says he normally goes ice fishing this time of year, but the warm weather was a welcome break.

DUBUQUE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A Guttenberg man died a few days after he was involved in a crash south of Dubuque. KGAN-TV reports Bonnie Tyler, 83 of Guttenberg, tried to cross the southbound lanes of a highway when her vehicle was hit another vehicle driven by a Marion man. Tyler and her husband Robert Tyler, a passenger in the vehicle, were both taken to the hospital for their injuries. The other driver refused medical attention. Robert Tyler had died from injuries on Christmas day. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines resident Dylan Merrifield, 21, was brutally attacked by a man who said he was God. WHO-TV reports 36-year-old Carl Stroud struck Merrifield on the head with a steel bar on December 9, while screaming, “I am God. I’m trying to save the kid.” Stroud has a long criminal record, which includes 12 cases of assault, violence and domestic abuse since 2003. The night of the assault, Stroud was on probation for a 2017 O.W.I. which included assaulting a Polk County Sheriff and a State Trooper. His sentence of five years was suspended. Merrifield has a fractured skull. CORALVILLE, IA (IRN) – A shooting killed one person on Christmas night near Coral Ridge Mall in Coralville. KCRG-TV reports witnesses heard nine shots, and first responders found three adults with gunshot wounds. All were transported to the hospital, where one died. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines police officer’s car was hit in a drive-by shooting Christmas night. KCCI-TV reports the officer in the vehicle sustained a minor hand injury from shattered glass. Officials are still looking for the shooter. IOWA (IRN) – A new report states Iowans are consuming more craft beers and fewer local wines. The State Alcoholic Beverages Division said sales of Iowa-produced beer jumped more than 16% in 2019. Sales of Iowa-made wine are down, but vintners say they will bounce back.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines woman who police say intentionally ran down a teen because of her race is now charged with attempted murder for hitting a 12-year-old boy with her vehicle earlier that day. WHO-TV reports 42-year-old Nicole Poole intentionally hit a boy with her SUV about an hour before she allegedly hit a 14-year-old girl at Indian Hills Junior High. Poole admitted to targeting the girl because she is “Mexican.” The 12-year-old boy is black. Both will recover. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A man died in a drowning incident on the Cedar River Sunday night, according to KCRG-TV. Talon Edward Williams, 21, of Cedar Rapids, died from drowning after falling into the river after the ice broke under his feet. Three people were on the frozen water at the park when the ice gave way. A 14-year-old male and a 17-year-old male were able to escape. After the ice broke, the two boys went to shore and called 911. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police are investigating two separate shootings Monday, according to KCCI-TV. A man told officers that he was shot at while driving and broken window glass hit him. He wasn’t injured. A few minutes later a 16-year-old boy was shot in the hand. The teen drove himself to the hospital. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Hundreds gathered outside the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital on Monday night to take part in “The Holiday Wave.” As families looked on from their hospital windows, lights and sirens from fire trucks and police cars slowly passed by, adding to the many that stood along the sidewalks with flashlights and glow sticks waving up to the children in the hospital.