Iowa Radio News

DES MOINES – A federal grand jury in Des Moines returned a three-count indictment charging five Des Moines individuals with offenses related to fentanyl trafficking. Among those are Devonte Darnell Hassell, Ryan Redmond, Kevin Stanley Harris, Jr., Andonia Angel Devora, and Ricky Jamall Ellis. All face various federal charges related to the distribution of the drug following arrests on December 18th. Those individuals are connected to search warrants conducted in 13 locations across the Des Moines metro area and featured more than a dozen federal, state, and local police agencies. IOWA – The Iowa Department of Health and Human Services is reporting the first human case of avian influenza A(H5) in the state. The individual was exposed to infected poultry while working with a commercial flock in northwest Iowa. The person reported mild symptoms, and the case was identified through testing at the State Hygienic Laboratory and confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As of December 20th, the CDC has reported 64 confirmed human cases of H5 HPAI across nine states. The majority of the exposures are linked to infected poultry or dairy cows. IOWA -No significant travel impacts are anticipated for the coming holiday week, according to the National Weather Service. The main theme will be mild temperatures with highs often in the 30s and 40s. The week will start out dry with the first precipitation chances in the form of light rain or light snow southeast Christmas Day. After that, there will be intermittent slight chances for light rain for Thursday and Friday, but above normal temperatures will keep any impactful wintry precipitation out of the forecast.

DES MOINES – Several police agencies executed more than a dozen search warrants in the Des Moines metro area Wednesday. The Des Moines Register reports the investigation relates to an opioid-related overdose, which started with a Des Moines Police Department response, but has now been turned over to federal jurisdiction. A total of 13 search warrants were issued and included the Chicago and Houston Police Departments, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and other local, state, and federal agencies.IOWA – Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 3.1 percent in November, and the state’s labor force participation rate rose to 66.3 percent. Meanwhile, the U.S. unemployment rate increased to 4.2 percent in November. The number of unemployed Iowans increased to 53,000 in November from 51,000 in October. The total number of working Iowans fell to 1,632,600 in November. This figure is 400 lower than October and 20,900 lower than one year ago.ALTOONA – Iowa Donor Network has selected Angel Dominguez of Bettendorf and Joshua Brennan of Davenport to be honored on the 2025 OneLegacy Donate Life Rose Parade Float in Pasadena, California on January 1st. Dominguez is a heart recipient, and Brennan is an organ donor . Brennan, who passed away in March 2022 at the age of 41, saved and healed numerous lives through organ and tissue donation. His floragraph will be placed on the float. Dominguez received a heart transplant in 1992 and will ride on the float.  

COUNCIL BLUFFS – A Harlan man was sentenced to seven years in federal prison for receiving child pornography. According to court documents, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a tip that an account, later determined to be associated with 42-year-old Jesse Daniel Blaine received files containing child sexual abuse material. Law enforcement seized electronic devices during a search of Blaine’s Harlan residence. A forensic examination showed that Blaine used his electronic devices to receive, view, and possess images and videos and to search for child sex stories. CEDAR RAPIDS – A Cedar Rapids man claims he was wrongfully charged by police with drug-related charges in Scott County. KCRG-TV reports Davon Browning was initially charged with possession of ecstasy, but those have since been dropped. His mother says when contacting the Scott County Attorney’s Office for a mug shot, the image was instead of another man who was a previous friend of Browning. The Linn County Attorney’s Office believes Hull may have tried to use Browning’s identity, which led to the mix up. IOWA CITY – In a celebration of her legacy and impact, the University of Iowa Athletics Department has announced plans to retire the No. 22 of Hawkeye women’s basketball star Caitlin Clark during a ceremony scheduled for February 2nd inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Clark will be in attendance for the game against USC. Caitlin finished as the all-time women’s NCAA Division I scoring leader, the major college scoring record-holder, and with the career points in Division I history for men and women. The two-time consensus National Player of the Year led the Hawkeyes to two national runners-up finishes in 2023 and 2024.

OSCEOLA – An elderly couple was found with gunshot wounds in Osceola Tuesday morning that eventually led to two deaths in an apparent murder-suicide. KCCI-TV reports 85-year-old Jim Kimball and 83-year-old Mary Ellen Kimball were discovered by police and transported to nearby hospitals, where they eventually died. The Osceola Police Department believes that both individuals may have been suffering from terminal illnesses. DES MOINES – President-elect Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against now-retired pollster J. Ann Selzer and the Des Moines Register over an inaccurate poll released just days before the general election. Iowa Public Radio reports the lawsuit accuses the newspaper and Selzer of election interference under Iowa’s Consumer Fraud Act. The Iowa Poll showed Vice President Kamala Harris leading Trump just three days before the general election that Trump would win by more than a dozen percentage points in the state.BOONE – The Iowa High School Athletic Association and Iowa High School Sports Network have reached a resolution in their media rights dispute which will make finals round livestreams free for viewers in 2024-25 and conclude their longstanding agreement following this athletic year. The settlement ends litigation which has been ongoing since the IHSAA filed its initial petition in June 2023. IHSSN has been the IHSAA’s exclusive rights holder for championship events since 2006. Media rights for IHSAA events will return to the association effective Aug. 1, 2025.

DES MOINES – Governor Kim Reynolds announced on Monday she has appointed Chris Cournoyer as Lieutenant Governor of Iowa. Cournoyer, a resident of LeClaire, was elected to the Iowa Senate in 2018. She chaired the inaugural Technology committee, from which position she wrote and managed the legislation that made Iowa the sixth state in the nation to protect consumer data in law. She was also Chair of the Education Budget Committee, Vice Chair of the State Government committee and sat on the Education, Natural Resources and Environment, Transportation, and Ways and Means committees. WATERLOO – The Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office has requested assistance from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation for a male who died while in the custody. Following an initial car chase by Waterloo Police on Sunday evening, the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office found the same vehicle twenty minutes after the city department called the pursuit off following a crash. Deputies chased the vehicle, operated by Willie Earl Washington, for approximately nine miles at speeds over 90 mph before it struck stop sticks. Washington was removed from the car by deputies and handcuffed, but then became unresponsive while in custody. Deputies were unable to revive the man despite life-saving efforts. An autopsy is scheduled for December 17th at the Office of the Iowa State Medical Examiner. IOWA – The Iowa State Patrol reported to 258 calls for service during this past weekend’s ice storm. WHO-13 details that among those, 93 were crashes — 78 of which property damage with 14 injuries and one fatality. There were also 138 motorist assists. The department urges travelers to avoid hitting the roads with such extensive ice and freezing rain.