DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – After the resignation of Senate Majority leader Bill Dix after video surfaced of him flirting with and kissing a lobbyist, Iowa Senate Republicans elected new leadership this morning. Sen. Jack Whitver is the new Senate Majority Leader, Sen. Charles Schneider is the new Senate President, Sen. Amy Sinclair is the new Majority Whip and Sen. Jake Chapman is the new Assistant Majority Leader.

OSKALOOSA, IA (IRN) – An Oskaloosa man has been charged with 2nd Degree Murder in the death of William Penn student Marquis Todd. Oskynews.com reports 23-year old Luke VanHemert allegedly stabbed Todd during a fight.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A semi truck carrying more than 100 hogs rolled over on Des Moines’ northeast side this morning. The Des Moines Register reports the driver was not injured in the incident, but the approximately 140 hogs had to be extracted from the vehicle and 10 had to be euthanized.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A controversial fetal heartbeat bill is no longer under consideration at the Statehouse, according to KCCI-TV. The bill, which would have banned abortions as soon as a fetal heartbeat is detected, will not be brought up for a vote. Before the abortion bill died, protesters lay on the Statehouse floor in silence and surrounded by hangers to represent women who died from having abortions when they were illegal.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – The Dubuque man convicted of stabbing his girlfriend to death is claiming bullying in the jury as a reason he should get a new trial, according to KCRG-TV. Fontae Buelow allegedly stabbed Samantha Link to death during a fight but Buelow claims Link stabbed herself. In the appeal, the defense claims two jurors bullied others into finding Buelow guilty during deliberations.

WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A West Des Moines donut shop is refunding money to dozens of customers whose credit cards were charged without their knowledge. WHO-TV reports the Dunkin’ Donuts store says a computer glitch in its credit card processing system charged customers’ cards on days they didn’t purchase anything.

IOWA (IRN) – Iowa is number one–but not in a good way. Insurify, an insurance comparison website, reports that Iowa is number one in speeding tickets. 23.2 percent of Iowa drivers have reported getting a speeding ticket. That’s the highest percentage in the country, even though Iowa has the lowest number of law enforcement officers per capita in the top 10 speeding ticket states.

AMES, IA (IRN) – A December report of a drive-by shooting in Ames was actually a false report, according to KCCI-TV. Police found 36-year-old Tracy Marie Flores with a gunshot wound to the leg, and she said she was the victim of a drive-by shooting. Police determined the drive-by shooting never happened, and it was actually an accidental shooting. As a result, Tracy Marie Flores and Rafael Angel Flores are both facing multiple charges.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa’s unemployment rate remained steady at 2.9 percent in January.
Iowa Workforce Development reports the rate of 2.9 percent compares favorably to a 4.1 percent national rate.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A controversial video has ended Republican Bill Dix’s career in the Statehouse. Dix resigned Monday as Senate majority leader and as a state senator after a video posted on the political blog Iowa Starting Line showed him kissing and flirting with a lobbyist at the Waveland Tap in Des Moines. The lobbyist is Lindsey McCune, with the Iowa League of Cities. The Des Moines Register reports that McCune is registered as a lobbyist on more than 200 bills this year that originated in the Senate while led by Dix. Senate Republicans will select a new leader Wednesday.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines firefighters worked late Monday night to extinguish a fire that gutted a house. KCCI-TV reports the house was for sale, and the owner said they had plans to close the sale today. The house had been occupied by squatters. No one was injured.

IOWA (IRN) – The flu has peaked in Iowa, according to the Iowa Department of Public Health. The number of flu-related hospitalizations and doctor visits have both dropped for a fourth straight week. So far, 207 Iowans have died from the flu this year.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Agriculture wants to save the Monarch butterfly. They announced Monday they will plant milkweed on up to 830,000 acres of land. The plant is the only place were female monarchs lay their eggs. In the last 20 years 80% of the monarch butterfly population in the United States has disappeared because of loss of habitat and pesticide drift.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Republican State Senate Majority Leader Bill Dix of Shell Rock has announced his resignation as Majority Leader and State Senator. A video on the liberal website Iowa Starting Line appears to show Dix flirting and kissing a female lobbyist at a Des Moines bar. The video came from an anonymous person who witnessed the interaction and recognized Sen. Dix from media reports.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man is in jail after he threatened to kill a woman and tried to burn down a home. WHO-TV reports 38-year-old Antonio Starks faces multiple charges in the incident. Police were called to the home around 1:15 a.m. Monday on a report that Starks was assaulting a woman. When officers arrived, Starks was pouring gas in a children’s bedroom. Starks then threw the gas can at officers and lit a bed in the room on fire. Starks ran at police and they were able to detain him. The fire was extinguished quickly.

FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A Newell, Iowa woman has died after she fell from a pickup truck and was hit by a car Friday night near Fort Dodge. The Iowa State Patrol reports 29-year-old Sarah Jensen fell from the truck driven by 31-year-old Joshua Jensen, also of Newell. She was then struck by a car driven by a Joplin, Missouri woman.

AMES, IA (IRN) – An Iowa State psychology professor’s research on the behavioral effects of video games suggests that President Donald Trump is within reason to believe graphic depictions of violence in video games can lead to more aggressive behavior. KCCI-TV reports professor Craig Anderson says, “when you look at all the research, it is clear that habitually playing violent video games is a causal factor for later physical, aggressive behavior.”

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A small plane crashed at the Eastern Iowa Airport Sunday afternoon in Cedar Rapids, according to KCRG-TV. The plane touched ground, then flipped on its top. No one was injured.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A woman and two children were rescued from a sinking car in the Cedar River in Cedar Rapids on Sunday. KGAN-TV reports when rescue crews arrived on scene, they found the woman and two children in ski boats. They had been rescued from the sinking car. All three were hospitalized, and there is no word on their conditions.

BLOOMFIELD, IA (IRN) – Play it Forward. That’s the program the Bluegrass Music Association of Iowa has created, according to KTVO-TV. It’s a non profit organization that provides instruments to kids, giving them a chance to become musicians. 12-year-old Maddy Warning has been playing the guitar for over a year now, all thanks to this organization. And now, her younger sister Abby has picked up the same instrument. Their hard work isn’t going unnoticed. Abby and Maddy will be performing in the 16th annual Bluegrass Show on March 24th.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A former East High School employee was arrested and charged with sexual exploitation after authorities say he inappropriately touched a student on a bus going home from a show choir competition. KCCI-TV reports 19-year-old Brent Nery of Des Moines worked part time at the school assisting with the drama department and choreography at East High School.

WASHINGTON, DC (IRN) – Iowa’s entire congressional delegation are warning that President Donald Trump’s call for tariffs on steel and aluminum could damage Iowa’s economy, especially farmers and others in the agriculture industry. Senators Grassley and Ernst, as well as Representatives Young, Blum, Loebsack and King – sent a letter to the president on March 7, expressing their disagreement with the tariffs and urging him to reconsider.

SABULA, IA (IRN) – The old bridge across the Mississippi River between Sabula, Iowa and Savanna, Illinois was demolished Friday, creating a traffic headache for Iowa-Illinois commuters.
KGAN-TV reports commuters will have to take a 36-mile-long detour as the new bridge could be closed until Memorial Day. Crews will be working around the clock to ensure that barge traffic can be restored early next week.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Dancing, gymnastics, basketball and so much more all happened in Iowa City Saturday. KCRG-TV reports about 1,300 of the state’s best special Olympic athletes faced off. Abbi Stastny, representing the Cedar Rapids Recreation Center says, “no matter if you win or lose we’re all still teammates.”