ACKLEY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa father accused of locking his son away in the basement has changed his mind about his trial. KCCI-TV reports Alex Shadlow of Ackley waived his right to a jury trial last month, but now he’s requesting one. He is accused of keeping his 8-year-old son confined for 9 hours a day in 2017. Shadlow’s fiancee Traci Tyler was sentenced to one year in jail last month.

ALTOONA, IA (IRN) – An Altoona man is in the Polk County Jail facing sexual abuse charges for allegedly abusing two young relatives. WHO-TV reports forty-four-year-old Jason Adkins was arrested Thursday. His victims were between the ages of 10 and 14 when the abuse took place. Since the investigation began, police have learned he has a criminal history of abuse in Georgia.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A fifth farmer has pleaded guilty to his role in an organic grain fraud scheme that involved at least $140 million in sales of grain. KGAN-TV reports grain grown on their non-organic fields was marketed and sold as organic and that unapproved substances were used on fields certified as organic.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids man tried to pay his court fine Friday morning, but he didn’t use cash or a check or credit card. KCRG-TV reports Brent Busch tried to use 45,500 pennies to pay a $455 fine for trespassing on railroad tracks in Cedar Rapids. Busch said he was trying to make a statement, but the clerk of court refused to take the pennies.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A judge says jurors will decide whether former Gov. Terry Branstad singled out a former state official for a pay cut because of his political party or sexual orientation. KCCI-TV reports Judge Brad McCall on Thursday rejected the state’s request to dismiss a long-running lawsuit filed by former Workers’ Compensation Commissioner Chris Godfrey. Branstad slashed Godfrey’s pay by 35 percent after the commissioner refused the governor’s request to resign in 2011. Godfrey argues that the pay cut and other retaliation was improperly motivated by his status as an openly gay man and Democrat.

BOONE, IA (IRN) – Police in Boone arrested two people yesterday in connection with a shooting that injured one person and placed nearby schools on lockdown. KCCI-TV reports the suspects will be each charged with attempted murder. The shooting victim is expected to survive.

BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – A Burlington man faces several charges after having a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old. WQAD-TV reports the Burlington Police Department arrested Shawn William Dickenson, 33, of Burlington, on multiple counts of sexual abuse in the 3rd degree. The sexual relationship spanned a 4 month period of time.

IOWA CITY,A (IRN) – Iowa City firefighters rescued four people from a second story apartment Thursday after a fire started on the ground floor apartment. Firefighters rescued the four from the window of the second floor apartment when heat and smoke blocked their exit.

SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – Students at Morningside College are celebrating the college’s past by thinking of the future. KCAU-TV reports the 2019 graduating class is marking the school’s 125th anniversary by making a time capsule. Some items for the capsule include Morningside memorabilia including a poster from the championship football season. The time capsule will be stored for the graduating class of 2044 to open on the college’s 150th anniversary.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police are investigating after a mountain lion was spotted in the city. WHO-TV reports police received surveillance video taken in the area of 31st Street and I-235 overnight that shows a large animal near the stairs leading into a home. Vince Evelsizer, the furbearer biologist with the Iowa DNR, confirms that the animal in the video is a mountain lion. Thursday morning, police released the video and warned the public to exercise an abundance of caution with children and animals.

IOWA (IRN) – President Trump is threatening to ratchet up tariffs on China from 10% to 25% Friday night if China doesn’t agree to a new trade agreement. KGAN-TV reports Iowa Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst are standing behind the president on the issue, and that they hope Iowa farmers will do so as well.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A girl was shot last night in Davenport, and taken to a local hospital. KGAN-TV reports the girl is 17 years old and was shot in the leg. Police are investigating, and she is expected to recover.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A tattoo shop owner on Des Moines’ east side had to board up his door after a burglary early Tuesday morning. KCCI-TV reports Gordo Tattoos owner Reymundo Ortiz said surveillance video caught the moments two thieves got away with his livelihood, stealing cables, wires, gloves and other tattooing equipment. Ortiz said everything he needs to do his job was taken, and that he doesn’t believe the burglary was a random act.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines Public School nurse is being hailed as a hero after saving a student’s life. WHO-TV reports River Woods Elementary School nurse Carole Voorhis saved second-grader Samantha Rickers life after a near fatal seizure by opening up her airway and giving her two minutes of chest compressions. Now Voorhis says she and Samantha are bonded for life, and hopes this is the last time she ever has to save a student’s life.

ONAWA, IA (IRN) – A new report has named Onawa, a small town known for its wide main street and its claim to the invention of the Eskimo Pie ice cream treat, the poorest town in the state of Iowa. According to the 24/7 Wall Street report, Onawa (population: 2,849) is the only town in the state where more than one in every four residents live below the poverty line.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Police say one patient sexually assaulted another patient at Broadlawns Medical Center in Des Moines. KCCI-TV reports it happened in the Mental Health Unit.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids woman on parole for killing a cab driver while drunk in a 2009 crash has again been arrested for drunk driving. KCRG-TV reports Connie Jo Gates, 46, was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2009. On Sunday, witnesses observed Gates falling out of her vehicle before driving off. Police say a breath sample taken from Gates registered a .20% Blood Alcohol Concentration. She’s in jail.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – The Waterloo City Council has upheld a decision by animal control officers that a pit bull that bit three people is a vicious dog. The dog will be put down. KWWL-TV reports two of the victims were children, and one was a 78-year-old man.

IOWA (IRN) – A new profession is giving people the warm fuzzies. WHO-TV reports Michelle White is a “professional cuddler.” She says cuddling as a type of therapy is rooted in the healing power of touch. Just as babies need to be cuddled, so do we. An hour long session will cost you $80. If you want to become a professional cuddler, DMACC will be offering a class in July.