February 9, 2012

You are here: Home / 2008 / August / Archives for 14th

Des Moines man confesses to shooting wife, witness

August 14, 2008 By

Shooting suspect

Police in Des Moines say the deaths of two women early Thursday stemmed from a domestic dispute. It happened on the city’s north side. The man responsible for the killings retreated to his home with his three children, but later was captured by cops. The children were not harmed and Des Moines Police Sergeant Vince Valdez says the 32-year-old man in custody has confessed to his crimes.

The Laotian suspect is charged in the death of his estranged wife and another woman, 60 year old Amalia Vasquez, who police say was driving by and witnessed the shooting. "She saw the suspect and she observed him walking away from the scene and told him to stop," Valdez says. "Well, he saw her. He returned back to the street and went to Vasquez car and fired a shot at her, as she was in the car."

The suspect, identified as Nath Inthaboun, was locked in his home with his three kids – ages 1, 3 and 5 – when officers arrived on the scene at 6 a.m. "The officers went up to the house and were going to knock on the door, but they saw the suspect inside with a gun so they backed off, secured the house and called for further direction," Valdez said. A two-hour long standoff ended when officers used stun grenades to gain entry into the home. "The most important piece of this all was just the safety of the children inside. They made the decision to go in there and make sure that they were safe and get them out of there," Valdez says. "We felt that we couldn’t wait any longer, so that decision was made."

Inthaboun was captured and is now charged with two counts of first degree murder for the death of Vasquez and his common-law wife, 32 year old Bounpanh Xayavongchanh. The suspect is also charged with two counts of attempted murder for firing on police officers, who were not hit or injured. "The officers didn’t fire back. We believe that Inthaboun’s weapon may have misfired or he was out of rounds and the officers did not have to shoot up the stairs, kill him or injure the children," Valdez says. "…They were able to subdue him." The three children are now with their grandparents.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts

GOP candidate says Leach showed "true stripes" by backing Obama

August 14, 2008 By

The Republican running for Iowa’s first district congressional seat is ridiculing former Iowa Congressman Jim Leach’s endorsement of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

David Hartsuch Leach, a Davenport native, is a Republican who represented Davenport for many years in congress, but lost his bid for reelection in 2006 in Iowa’s second congressional district. David Hartsuch, a Bettendorf doctor, is the Republican candidate in the first district this year. "Maybe it was time for (Leach) to leave office," Hartsuch says. "I think (Leach) has been a good legislator for many years, but unfortunately I think he’s got it all wrong and I think he did show his stripes by endorsing Obama over McCain."

Hartsuch defeated Maggie Tinsman, another "moderate" Republican to win his state senate seat in 2006 and Hartsuch considers Tinsman and Leach two of a kind. "They were not Republicans to begin with. They’re not Republicans now and I do believe that Jim Leach has shown his stripes," Hartsuch said during an appearance at The Des Moines Register’s Soap Box on the state fairgrounds.

Moments later, Hartsuch told reporters Leach’s announcement will yield little for Obama. "If anything, I think it’s going to wake a lot of Republicans up and they’re going to realize what kind of leadership we’ve had in our own party and maybe it’s time to get back to our original, core values of limited government and lower taxes," Hartsuch said.

Hartsuch is a long-shot candidate who has raised about $16,000 for his bid to unseat Congressman Bruce Braley, a Democrat from Waterloo. Hartsuch admits his campaign fund is lean. "Right now, I can’t buy literature," Hartsuch told reporters. Buying ad time on TV and radio is out of the question, but Hartsuch points to 2006 election results which showed the Republican candidate for secretary of state spent no money on her campaign, yet got 42 percent of the vote in the first congressional district.

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With: , ,

Latham among Republicans protesting on House floor

August 14, 2008 By

Iowa Congressman Tom Latham was among the Republicans who took to the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives today, calling on Democrats to return to Washington for a vote on offshore oil drilling and other GOP energy ideas.

"I think the American people understand that we can no longer be sending $700 billion a year to foreign countries that don’t have our best interests in mind," Latham told Radio Iowa. "This is about this country going after American oil and natural gas…creating American jobs."

Republicans have been giving speeches on the House floor, without an active sound system, since August 1st, when Congress adjourned for a five-week recess. Tourists are being invited into the chamber to listen. Latham’s opponent in the November general election, Democrat Becky Greenwald of Perry, has questioned why Latham and other Republicans didn’t address the issue when they controlled the debate agenda.

Latham says his party did send a bill, containing the same proposals they’re pushing now, to President Clinton in 1997. "He vetoed it and there were enough Democrats that supported his veto of that energy act that it could not become law," Latham said. "The fact of the matter is what is holding up the whole process today is the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, and the Democratic majority will not allow a vote. That is the reality of the situation."

Latham, who lives in Ames, has been a member of congress for 14 years.

Filed Under: Environment & Conservation, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , ,

Boswell feels "dang good" after two weeks in hospital

August 14, 2008 By

Leonard Boswell Congressman Leonard Boswell, a Democrat from Des Moines, says he’s fine and has no plans to retire. Boswell, who is 74, recently spent two weeks in the hospital.

During an appearance at The Des Moines Register’s Soap Box on the Iowa State Fair, a fairgoer asked Boswell if he was in good health. "Yes, I am. Come up here and take a hold of me if you don’t think I’m in good health," Boswell replied. "I’m feeling very, very good."

Boswell was admitted to a Washington, D.C. hospital on Wednesday, July 9th, for a procedure his chief of staff said was "a revision from his previous surgery." In 2005, Boswell had a large, non-cancerous tumor removed from his abdomen. Boswell told reporters this afternoon that he is "dang good."

"I’ve got a lot to be thankful for. I’m feeling good. I did some elective, corrective (surgery) — you’ve heard all that stuff so I won’t go back through all that," Boswell said. "It turned out good and I’m glad I’ve got it behind me and the doctors are happy and so is Leonard."

Boswell is seeking a sixth term in the U.S. House. He faces Republican Kim Schmett on the November ballot and today’s State Fair visit was among Boswell’s first public campaign appearances since he was released from the hospital. Boswell says his doctor has given him a positive report. "I think it went extremely well and I’m feeling good and getting my strength back out and I’m out and going," Boswell said. "(I’m) very upbeat and looking forward to getting into full swing and we’re just about there."

Boswell told reporters he has no plans to retire. "Oh, I’m not even thinking about that. There’s so much on the plate right now that’s not on my the mind. You know, I’ve said as long as the people want me to serve and I have the desire — which I do have — and there’s things to be done where feel like I’m making a contribution, then I want to continue to serve but I don’t have (any) goal for any set length of time or anything like that," Boswell said. "Let’s let that decide as it comes along."

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With: , ,

Two killed in fiery crash on I-380

August 14, 2008 By

Authorities have identified one of the two people killed in a multiple vehicle crash this morning in northeast Iowa. It happened around 7 a.m. on Interstate 380 near the Brandon interchange in Buchanan County. Sergeant John Baber of the Iowa State Patrol says investigators are still trying to figure out what happened. "We’re still trying to piece it together, but we did have a vehicle going northbound in the southbound lanes of I-380," Baber said. "It did strike one vehicle head on and two semis were involved."

The driver of the van, that was driving the wrong way on the road, was killed. That person has not been identified. The driver of the car was also killed. She’s identified as 38 year old Carrie McGill of Jesup. One of the two semis that drove through the crash scene ended up crashing in a ditch, where the rig caught on fire. The semi driver was taken to a Waterloo hospital.

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Iowa-born children’s book author pens hit with BRATT pack

August 14, 2008 By

Jennifer Hall An Iowa native is finding global success writing children’s books. Jennifer Hall published her first book last year, "The BRATT Patrol," which found such a welcoming audience, her second book in the series is now on shelves.

Now living in southern California, Hall grew up in the Tama County town of Gladbrook and says she was stunned how quickly her story of young detectives gained popularity, and not just in the U-S. "I Googled myself and I found out that my books are selling in Japan and Germany and just all across the world, so it was really exciting and overwhelming," Hall says.

The series follows a group of five children: Billy, Ryan, Andy, Tori and Trish, whose initials form BRATT. She says the second story, "The BRATT Patrol: To Catch a Thief," picks up right where the first book left off. Hall says, "The children are on the trail of a legendary pirate and they have to track down a missing treasure and the only witness to the stolen treasure is a parrot with a head cold."

She says her target audience is primarily kids between the ages of eight and 12, though she’s heard from younger children who enjoy the books as well.

Hall says she was inspired by stories about a young female detective when she was an Iowa girl. She says, "I read Nancy Drew from ages 13, 14, 15, so I wanted to do something for boys and girls in that younger age group to get them to start to read earlier." Hall says she’s not lacking for ideas and hopes to continue writing the BRATT patrol books for years to come.

For more information, visit her website www.authorjenniferhall.com .

Filed Under: Human Interest

Tornado, grapefruit-sized hail hits NW Iowa

August 14, 2008 By

Damage is still being assessed from the severe storm, large hail and tornado that swiped parts of northwest Iowa last night. The storm also rumbled across southwest Minnesota and eastern South Dakota. Meteorologist Todd Heitkamp, at the National Weather Service office in Sioux Falls, says hailstones as large as three-and-a-half inches in diameter were reported in the storm. He says that’s the size of a grapefruit, "it’s a big chunk of ice, there’s no doubt about that."

The monster hail was reported in Dickinson, Clay and Buena Vista counties, while the tornado touched down in Dickinson County. Heitkamp says severe winds damaged a hog barn near Lake Park, Iowa, and hail was one-to-two inches deep near Storm Lake, Iowa.

Filed Under: Weather
« Older Posts