Iowa Radio News

KEOSAUQUA, IA (IRN) – A southeast Iowa woman has been given 10 years in prison for letting her 2-month-old son starve to death. KCCI-TV reports 25-year-old Angel Poole, of Birmingham, was sentenced Friday. Authorities say he weighed a little over 5 pounds at death. An autopsy showed he died of starvation and dehydration. URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – An Urbandale police sergeant is suing the department for abusive treatment. KCCI-TV reports Sgt. Mark Jorgensen said he suffers post-traumatic stress disorder following the ambush-style shooting death of Urbandale police Officer Justin Martin in 2016. Jorgensen and his partner were the first to arrive on scene, and with the killer at large, he says the department didn’t send enough backup. Afterward, Jorgensen claims that he faced discrimination and harassment. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man allegedly hijacked a Des Moines city bus and forced the driver to speed through red lights downtown before being arrested. The Des Moines Register reports 25-year-old Abraham Ramirez boarded the bus as the lone passenger and ordered the driver to speed away or “I’ll bust your head wide open.” After ordering the driver to stop at a police station, he then told the driver to honk the horn repeatedly and said he would kill the first officer to show up. He didn’t, and is in jail. IOWA (IRN) – The United States Postal Service announced that postal delivery and pickup will be suspended today in several states, including Iowa, due to the brutal cold from Polar Vortex Jayden. IOWA (IRN) – With temperatures forecast to reach minus 20 degrees today, Iowa, and the rest of the upper midwest will be among the coldest places on Earth. Temperatures at McMurdo Station in Antarctica are expected to be in the high single-digits to mid-teens today.

LIME SPRINGS, IA (IRN) – A 28-year-old man died after a snowmobiling accident in northeast Iowa. The Howard County Sheriff’s Office says the accident occurred about 1:40 a.m. Friday on a trail that runs on a side of a road about 2 miles northwest of Lime Springs. The office says Ross Wilson was riding alone when his machine rolled over him. He was found later by other snowmobile riders. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – After the first House vote of the year, absentee ballots cast by 29 northeast Iowans will not count in November’s midterm election. WHO-TV reports the ballots are among 33 received after election day, and while the post office determined they were mailed before the election deadline, they lacked a postmark. Democrat Kayla Koether filed an election contest after losing the House District 55 race by nine votes, but she says this isn’t about losing. She says it’s about making sure every vote counts. The Republican majority declined to count the ballots by a vote of 53 to 42. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – All three state universities and Drake canceled classes due to incoming arctic cold. They join a great many private and public schools and colleges across the state as the worst winter cold snap in 25 years hits. QUAD CITIES, IA (IRN) – The Quad Cities’ three transit systems will be offering free rides during the cold snap. The free rides, offered by Metro, BettendorfTransit and Davenport CitiBus will be today and tomorrow. IOWA (IRN) – Iowa and Iowa State’s men’s basketball teams moved in the polls after a tough week. The Cyclones moved from 25th in the USA TODAY Coaches’ Poll and 24th in the Associated Press poll to No. 20 in both sets of rankings. After two losses, the Hawkeyes slipped from 19th to out of the rankings in the AP poll and from 21st to 25th in the coaches’ poll.

WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – West Des Moines police say a car broke through the ice and sank in a pond Sunday night. Witnesses saw two men get out and run away. The men were later identified as Bryce Summers, 22, of Eagle Grove and Christopher Elliott, 22, of Webster City. Both charged with public intoxication and carrying weapons. MARSHALLTOWN, IA (IRN) – A 13-year-old central Iowa boy who left home in the middle of a snowstorm has been found dead, bringing the days long search — made difficult by frigid temperatures and blustery winds — to an end. KCCI-TV reports Corey Brown’s body was found yesterday morning in a secluded area on the west side of Marshalltown. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man was killed yesterday in a crash. WHO-TV reports the car was traveling on Grand Avenue when it left the roadway and went over a concrete wall slamming into the parking lot below. 32-year-old Des Moines resident Grant Stokka was killed. His 8-year-old son was treated for minor injuries. Stokka was driving home from church when the crash happened. Witnesses say Stokka likely didn’t see the other vehicle coming because there was a huge pile of snow blocking his view. CHEROKEE, IA (IRN) – A long idle Tyson Foods processing plant in Cherokee is reopening under new ownership. The Sioux City Journal reports that Iowa Food Group will hire about 100 people this year. Arkansas-based Tyson Foods closed the plant in September 2014, taking 450 jobs with it. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – RAGBRAI officials announced Saturday which cities will host overnight stops on the 2019 route. The route will begin in Council Bluffs with stops in Atlantic, Winterset, Indianola, Centerville, Fairfield, Burlington and Keokuk. RAGBRAI 47 will take place July 21 – 27.

LINN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – One person was sent to the hospital after a Saturday collision involving a plow truck in Linn County. Mildred McCoy, 40, from Central City, was taken to the hospital with what were believed to be non-life-threatening injuries after the vehicle in which she was riding hit the back of a snowplow. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Officials are investigating after a large multi-vehicle crash in Cedar Rapids, Saturday morning. KCRG-TV reports up to 10 vehicles were involved in the collision, including a garbage truck. No one was injured. PRIMGHAR, IA (IRN) – Rep. Steve King on Saturday opened his first town hall since sparking outrage over his latest racially insensitive remarks by insisting he isn’t racist. The Iowa Republican was removed from his committee assignments in the new Congress earlier this month for defending the term “white supremacist,” the latest among numerous public statements widely seen as racist or insensitive. The town hall was in Primghar. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – On Saturday, RAGBRAI officials announced which cities will host overnight stops on the 2019 route. The route will begin in Council Bluffs with stops in Atlantic, Winterset, Indianola, Centerville, Fairfield, Burlington and Keokuk. RAGBRAI 47 will take place July 21 – 27.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A student was injured Friday afternoon after a fight broke out between a handful of students on the front lawn of a Des Moines school, according to KCCI-TV. The Hoover High School principal said in an email to parents that the incident happened after school was dismissed. One student had a knife, and another student was injured as a result. MUSCATINE, IA (IRN) – Kidnapping charges in Muscatine have been dropped after the county attorney says the victim sabotaged the case. WQAD-TV reports the victim was bound by the hands and feet, thrown into a car trunk and then dumped in a field in the middle of the night. The victim now refuses to cooperate. SIGOURNEY, IA (IRN) – Two eastern Iowa kids are recovering from severe burns after trying a viral online trend, according to KCRG-TV. It’s called the “salt and ice challenge.” Participants put table salt on exposed skin, add an ice cube, and then hold it there as long as they can tolerate the pain. A Sigourney 15-year-old tried it with a group of friends. The group raised the stakes by using snow and the results were gruesome. She received severe burns. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – The city of Dubuque has a goal of creating a new smart parking system, which could include an app that would show drivers available parking spaces, and allow payment through the app. But at least one city council member worries the implementation of this could hurt the taxpayer. The app will also issue tickets.