DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man was shot while sitting in his chair and miraculously, wasn’t injured. KCCI-TV reports police got a report of shots fired and found a car had crashed while trying to get out of the area. Police found bullet holes in the car and shell casings on the street. Then, they learned a bullet went through a home, hit a chair and the man sitting in it. The chair did a good job of stopping the bullet, because the 79-year-old man was not wounded.

MUSCATINE, IA (IRN) – 19-year-old Darian Lensgraf of Muscatine is in jail after killing his grandmother, Diana Lensgraf, on her 66th birthday. WQAD-TV reports a clerk at a convenience store called police saying there was a man in the store with a bloody knife saying he had killed someone. Police found Lensgraf at the store, where he confessed.

URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – Urbandale police have released more information about the shooting death of a 20-year-old man this past weekend. The Des Moines Register reports Anthony Ryan Taylor died of an accidental, self-inflicted gunshot wound. Friends gathered at the skate park he frequented to remember the young, carefree man known lovingly as “Catwang.”

WASHINGTON, DC (IRN) – Iowa’s two Republican senators are divided on the new farm bill. Sen. Joni Ernst voted for the bill and Sen. Charles Grassley voted against it. Grassley said the five-year bill only benefits large farms and will make smaller operations more vulnerable. He also disagrees with the language in the bill that allows family members who don’t farm to collect subsidies.

WASHINGTON, DC (IRN) – The farm bill also authorizes the growing of industrial hemp. Industrial hemp doesn’t give the high that marijuana does. Instead, it can be used to make products like rope, textiles, paper and plastic. KCRG-TV reports Johnson County Supervisor Mike Carberry says he’s excited about the potential economic impact. Carberry says “hemp is a great product — the oil, they make rope out of it, they make clothes. It’s a very, very strong fiber. The deep roots are good for soil and good for farmers.” Experts say Iowa is a great place to grow hemp.

MUSCATINE, IA (IRN) – A man has been arrested on a murder charge after police found a woman stabbed to death. WQAD-TV reports Darian Drew Lensgraf, 19, of Muscatine was arrested for first-degree murder. Police responded to a call at a approximately 3:30 a.m. reporting that a woman had been stabbed to death at a home. Sixteen minutes later, a clerk at a convenience store a few blocks away called 911, reporting a man with a bloody knife was there. Police arrested Lensgraf at the store. After he was read his rights, he admitted that he had taken the knife to the victim’s house with the intent to kill her.

DELAWARE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A Dyersville man is dead after a fiery crash in Delaware County Tuesday night. According to the Iowa State Patrol, a semi had turned right onto a highway when a van hit the back of the vehicle. The van caught fire with the driver trapped inside. The driver of the van, 60-year-old Russell Faust, was killed. The driver of the semi was uninjured.

INDEPENDENCE, IA (IRN) An Independence couple were arrested for growing and using drugs around two children. KWWL-TV reports David and Carrie Stick were arrested for felony possession of twelve marijuana plants and two counts of child endangerment.

MARION, IA (IRN) – A student was taken into custody after threatening to use a firearm inside an eastern Iowa school. The Des Moines Register reports the threat was at Vernon Middle School in Marion and the school went into lockdown.The child who made the threat was charged with first-degree harassment and transferred to Linn County Juvenile Detention Center. No one was hurt and no weapon was found.

ALTOONA, IA (IRN) – Law enforcement officials closed off the Target, Lowes, and Staples stores in Altoona just before noon Tuesday. A bomb threat was made to the Target store. The store was evacuated and two bomb-sniffing dogs found nothing.

WAUKEE, IA (IRN) – A man is facing attempted murder charges after an incident in Waukee.
KCCI-TV reports 41-year-old Bobby Littrell stabbed another man in the heart at the bar Kenny’s Garage last month. Littrell was talking and shaking hands with the victim, and then stabbed him in the chest. The impact of the knife punctured the sack surrounding the victim’s heart. The victim survived.

NORWOODVILLE, IA (IRN) – Two Polk County deputies were treated for smoke inhalation after a house fire early Monday in Norwoodville. A child was home at the time of the fire but managed to escape. The deputies ran into the home to make sure no one else was inside. The home is a total loss.

WAUKEE, IA (IRN) – Parents of Waukee students called for the superintendent and chief operating officer to be fired in the wake of a state audit that found over $130,000 in payments made by the school district that were not in the best interest of taxpayers. The Des Moines Register reports a standing-room-only crowd of hundreds of student’s parents and taxpayers made the demand at last night’s school board meeting.

MARION, IA (IRN) – Marion Police say they have seen a spike in storage unit burglaries the past few months. KCRG-TV reports the burglaries peaked at eleven in November.

SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – Over 2,000 babies have been born at UnityPoint Health-St. Luke’s Hospital in Sioux City so far this year. What were the most popular baby names? KCAU-TV reports Oliver is the most popular boy’s name, followed by Jaxon, Liam, and Jacob. For the girls, Emma and Mia lead the list, followed by Isabella, Olivia, and Sophia.

URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – A death investigation is underway in Urbandale this morning, according to KCCI-TV. No other information has been released.

MARION COUNTY, IA (IRN) – One person was killed in an apparent hunting accident near Lake Red Rock Sunday afternoon, according to KRLS Radio. The person was shot in the chest. The DNR is investigating.

MADISON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – An apparent hunting accident Sunday has injured a Madison County man. WHO-TV reports 39-year-old Ronald Butler dropped his shotgun getting out of a vehicle. The gun went off and struck him. His condition is unknown, and the DNR is investigating.

OELWEIN, IA (IRN) – The Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office is looking into what could be another shooting of a captive zebra in rural Oelwein on Sunday. KCRG-TV reports the zebra has been transferred to the ISU Veterinary Laboratory in Ames to determine the cause of death. The owner of the animal said the shooting marked the fourth time one of his seven zebras had taken a bullet.

AMES, IA (IRN) – Iowa State University has extended head football coach Matt Campbell’s contract through 2024. Campbell’s previous extension, signed last year, was for six seasons and $22.5 million. Campbell has led Iowa State to a 8-4 record so far this season. Iowa State will face Washington State in the Alamo Bowl on December 28 in San Antonio.

CLARINDA, IA (IRN) – There was no pastry in the Pop Tart box that landed Linda Lee Whitlatch behind bars. The Des Moines Register reports the 30-year-old pleaded guilty to drug-related charges last week after she was accused of trying to sneak a Pop Tart box with more than 7 grams of meth in it into the Clarinda Correctional Facility. She dropped the drug-filled Pop Tart box into a garbage can and officers believe an inmate was supposed to receive it.