Iowa Radio News

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Supreme Court says a stun gun, under Iowa law, is a dangerous weapon. The court made the conclusion as it affirmed the conviction of a woman charged with carrying a dangerous weapon after police found a stun gun in her purse during an arrest for theft at a Waterloo Walmart. 25-year-old Taquala Howse appealed saying her small hand-held stun gun isn’t dangerous. The court disagreed. TUCSON, AZ (IRN) – An Iowa man has been sentenced to nearly 12 years in federal prison for assaulting a corrections officer in Arizona. KCCI-TV reports 41-year-old Howard James Sawyer of Iowa City was sentenced Thursday. Sawyer was incarcerated in Tucson after a conviction for failure to register as a sex offender when he punched the officer. The officer suffered permanent vision impairment. DUBUQUE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A cement truck failed to negotiate a curve and wound up on its side Tuesday afternoon in Dubuque County. KCRG-TV reports it took emergency crews 30 minutes to free the driver, 44-year-old Greg Torrance of Dyersville. He’s OK. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A passenger plane was forced to make an emergency landing at the Waterloo airport after smoke started coming from the cockpit on Thursday. KWWL-TV reports the American Airlines plane was en route from Sioux Falls, South Dakota to Chicago. Passengers started panicking, but the plane landed safely. The upside for the crew and passengers? The Waterloo Convention and Visitors Bureau saw a marketing opportunity and dropped off cupcakes. AMES, IA (IRN) – Iowa State University basketball player Monte Morris is from Flint, Michigan, and wants to help his hometown during a crisis. The city water supply suffers from lead contamination. WHO-TV reports after tweeting a video asking people to donate to the Red Cross and help Flint, Hy-Vee responded. The Iowa-based grocery store chain is donating 11 semi trucks full of bottled water that left for Flint Thursday. No. 11 is Monte’s team number.

AMES, IA (IRN) – A juvenile being transported to a detention facility made a run for it Wednesday and even got some help from drivers along the road. WHO-TV reports a transport service was taking the juvenile to a correctional facility when they stopped at a rest area along Interstate 35 near Ames. The transport officer stopped to use the facilities and the juvenile fled. He was picked up by a driver who said he thought the juvenile looked cold. HAMILTON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A 28-year-old Anamosa man died Wednesday after falling while working on a construction site, according to KCRG-TV.The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office says Stefan Watermann fell from a cell tower in the eastern part of the county. KEOKUK, IA (IRN) – Dozens of reports to law enforcement agencies about runaways, assaults and suicide attempts by troubled teens at Midwest Academy in Keokuk often were not made until days after they occurred, according to the Des Moines Register. Officers raided the boarding school for troubled teenagers recently to investigate allegations that a staff member sexually assaulted a student. The facilities have since been closed. SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – A man accused of homicide in Sioux City is being held on bond of $750,000 and faces a 50-year prison sentence if convicted on the second-degree murder charge. 47-year-old Elias Wanatee was arrested Wednesday for the stabbing death of 50-year-old Vernon Mace of Sioux City. Wanatee was released from prison in January 2015 for the 1991 beating death of a man outside a Sioux City bar. FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A man wanted for attempted murder was captured at a Fort Dodge Wal-Mart Wednesday. KCCI-TV reports Fort Dodge police received a tip that 36-year-old Jeremy Werneburg was at the store. Werneburg was wanted for attempted murder in Sac County. He resisted arrest, injured an officer, but that officer subdued Werneburg with a taser. He’s in jail. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – An Eastern Iowa Elementary school Principal is facing OWI Charges. KWWL-TV reports 40-year-old Amber Dietz, the principal at Kingsley Elementary School in Waterloo was arrested for driving with a blood alcohol level of .159, nearly twice the legal limit. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Late Wednesday afternoon an expanded medical marijuana bill passed the Iowa House Commerce Committee, meaning cannabis treatment could soon be more easily available to patients. The bill would cover treatment for epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and terminal cancer. BETTENDORF, IA (IRN) – Google chose an elementary student from Bettendorf as the Iowa finalist in their annual Google Doodle contest. WQAD-TV reports second-grader Shalini (SHAH-luh-nee) Chandupatla (CHAHN-doo-paht-luh) from Hopewell Elementary School submitted a doodle for the 2016 theme “What makes me… me.” Her design reads “I feel so good being ME!” and includes illustrations of reading, music, art, and outdoor activities.

MAXWELL, IA (IRN) – All schools in the Collins-Maxwell School district were on lockdown this morning. KCCI-TV reports Principal Jordan Nelson said schools were on lockdown because of a threat made to staff members by a parent. A message sent to parents said the lockdown was underway until “the parent is located and arrested.” That person was located and arrested about noon. BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – Burlington first responders were dispatched Tuesday to the Howard Johnson’s Hotel in regards to an unresponsive three-month-old boy. KHQA-TV reports the infant was identified as Carson Ryan Simmons. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital. An investigation into his death continues. SWISHER, IA (IRN) – Liquid runway deicer and diesel fuel spilled after a semi-truck owned by Cryotech Deicing Technology rolled over Monday afternoon along Interstate 380 south of Cedar Rapids. About 3,600 gallons of liquid runway deicer and an estimated 50 gallons of diesel fuel flowed into McAllister Creek and downstream to the Coralville Reservoir. The DNR is helping with cleanup. The driver was hospitalized. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – University of Iowa police have identified a man caught recording video of a woman showering in a dorm bathroom. The Iowa City Press Citizen reports an officer responded to the scene and found Robert Hightower hiding in a stall. Police say when confronted by the officer, Hightower resisted arrest and fled. He faces over seven years in jail if convicted. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Falls teacher is facing charges of prescription drug theft–from students. KWWL-TV reports Doug Wilkinson was arrested in connection to missing prescription drugs at Holmes Junior High. Security videos show Wilkinson taking pills from the nurse’s cabinet. District policy requires students to store their medications in the nurse’s office, and that’s how Wilkinson was able to allegedly steal 5 different students’ prescriptions. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A new bill passed in an Iowa legislative transportation subcommittee could raise the speed limit on Iowa’s interstates. KCCI-TV reports Iowa raised the interstate speed limit from 65 to 70 miles an hour 10 years ago. The new bill would increase the speed limit to 75 miles an hour. The DOT doesn’t like the bill, saying the change would result in more highway deaths. INDIANOLA, IA (IRN) – Every wrestler at the state wrestling tournament in Des Moines this week wants one thing–a state championship. A district champion from Indianola is facing the challenge differently than others–on one leg. Kobey Pritchard lost a leg to cancer when he was five. His mom says “In our house, we don’t talk disability. We don’t talk disadvantage.” Kobey’s dreams extend beyond the state championship. He hopes to one day be on the Division I Iowa Hawkeyes wrestling team.

OSAGE, IA (IRN) – Osage police are searching for the suspect in an apparent stabbing that reportedly happened early Monday morning at the Triangle Trailer Court. KIMT-TV reports the hospital reported the victim as a 28-year-old man, and his injuries are believed to be non-life-threatening. Osage police say the victim and witnesses have been uncooperative with law enforcement and the investigation. MONROE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – An arrest has been made in the alleged sexual assault of an infant in Monroe County. WHO-TV reports Justin Stickrod has been arrested in the case and charged with child endangerment and first degree sexual abuse. Officials say the victim in the case is Stickrod’s daughter. He is being held in the Monroe County Jail. NORTH ENGLISH, (IRN) – A 25-year-old man died in a fire Sunday in North English, according to KCII Radio. When emergency crews responded they found the second story of the home engulfed in flames. After the fire was extinguished, Austin Watson, the homeowner, was found deceased inside the home. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A dog died protecting the couple who owned him in Waterloo Monday, according to KWWL-TV. Several men wearing dark clothing and ski masks broke into the home in an attempt to burglarize the residence. One of the men hit the woman with a gaming console and the dog attacked. The dog was shot several times, the woman screamed, and the men fled, according to neighbors. AMES, IA (IRN) – A water main break dumped up to a million gallons of water in Ames’ streets and the basement of homes Monday afternoon. The city says the 14-inch water main break was caused by the extreme change in temperature. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) Amid the debate of whether President Obama should hold off on appointing a replacement judge after Antonin Scalia passed away, the president has been moving forward. KCRG-TV reports President Obama mentioned Iowa judge Jane Kelly as a possible replacement. Kelly is one of 10 judges serving in the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. She was appointed in April of 2013 and serves out of Cedar Rapids. INDIANOLA, IA (IRN) – Two men ice fishing saved a photographer who fell through the ice at Lake Ahquabi Sunday morning. Iowa Department of Natural Resources officials say 58-year-old Richard Rauzi was snowshoeing and taking wildlife photos when he got too close to open water and fell through the ice. Jesse Bannor of Des Moines and Damian Bell of Pleasant Hill heard Rauzi shouting for help. They grabbed a canoe and paddling with their hands, were able to keep Rauzi afloat until rescue workers arrived.

NEVADA, IA (IRN) – The CyRide bus driver accused in a deadly hit and run has pled not guilty. WHO-TV reports twenty-three-year-old Benjamin Clague is accused of killing EmmaLee Jacobs near the Iowa State campus last December. Ames police say Clague hit the college student as she was crossing Lincoln Way. Jacobs later died in the hospital. CUMMING, IA (IRN) – A fatal crash involving a semi-trailer temporarily closed Interstate 35 near Cumming this morning, according to KCCI-TV. The crash was reported around 4 a.m. Iowa State Patrol officials confirmed the driver of the truck was killed in the crash. The identity of the driver has not yet been released. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A morning mobile home fire killed one person and sent another to the hospital in Cedar Rapids. KCRG-TV reports one person died and another was hospitalized. The victims were a couple, and a neighbor said the pair had lived together in the home for about 45 years. FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A teenager died and five people were injured in a car crash near Fort Dodge on Saturday afternoon. The Iowa State Patrol says the car entered a ditch before it rolled and ejected the passengers. 13-year-old Duane Touney of Fort Dodge was pronounced dead at the scene. He wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. The five other people in the vehicle were taken to a local hospital. Only one of them had been wearing a seatbelt. JOHNSON COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A 30 vehicle crash in Johnson County shut down westbound I-80 Sunday afternoon. KWWL-TV reports three people were injured, and traffic was backed up for hours. WRIGHT COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation is investigating a shooting that happened in Wright County Sunday night. The shooting happened in Eagle Grove, and authorities say two people were involved. One person was transported to a Des Moines hospital by air ambulance and the other was taken to a local hospital. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – In January, seafood inspectors at Hy-Vee’s distribution center in Ankeny stumbled on a rare orange lobster. This Cape Cod area-sourced lobster is rare because only one in approximately 10 million lobsters are orange. Hy-Vee named the lobster “R.C.” after its Responsible Choice seafood program. R.C never made it to a dinner plate, but instead found a permanent home at the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque.