A former Cresco Boy Scout leader was arrested today by Cresco Police and the DCI after an investigation into sexual abuse allegations. The DCI says 73-year-old James Hughes is charged with four counts of third-degree sexual abuse and six counts of lascivious acts with a minor involving five … [Read more...]
New state website provides info on emerging drugs
The state is launching a website designed to inform Iowans about new and emerging drugs and other products, both legal and illegal, many of which can be deadly. Dale Woolery, director of the Iowa Office of Drug Control Policy, says this type of online educational resource about drugs is urgently … [Read more...]
Cedar Rapids teen who killed parents to serve 50 years before chance for parole
A Cedar Rapids teen who admitted to killing his parents in 2021 was sentenced to life in prison Monday, with a chance for parole after 50 years. Ethan Orton pleaded guilty in March to stabbing his parents, Misty Scott-Slade and Casey Orton, to death in their home. Orton was five months away from … [Read more...]
Ottumwa father and daughter face sentencing for tax, unemployment fraud
Two people from Ottumwa have been convicted in what an IRS agent describes as a massive scheme to defraud taxpayers by directing income tax refunds and unemployment benefits into bank accounts they could access. Forty-seven year old Thein Maung pleaded guilty to fraud in May and a jury found his … [Read more...]
Storm Lake teen charged with trying to hire a hitman
A teenager was charged Friday with solicitation to commit murder after Storm Lake Police say she attempted to hire a hitman on the parody website rentahitman.com. The website's webmaster reported that someone had visited the site on two occasions and had attempted to solicit the murder of a seven … [Read more...]
Safe Community Coalition forms in Fort Dodge
A "Safe Community Coalition of Fort Dodge and Webster County" has been formed. The group hosted a town hall meeting in Fort Dodge yesterday after three shooting deaths in the Fort Dodge last month. The meeting site was just four blocks from where an 18 year old was shot to death in early May. … [Read more...]
Judge again sentences 18 year old who killed alleged rapist to probation, not prison
A human trafficking victim who pleaded guilty to killing a man she said raped her when she was 15 has again been placed on probation at a residential facility. Last November, Pieper Lewis cut off her ankle monitor and left a transitional women's center in Des Moines without permission. Polk … [Read more...]
Look closely before you leap into renting a summer vacation property
Iowans who are spending part of their Memorial Day looking for a place to rent for their upcoming summer vacation need to be wary of scams. Consumer protection expert Michelle Reinen advises everyone to do their homework first to make sure dream listings on sites like Vacation Rental By Owner or … [Read more...]
Iowa Supreme Court rules on estate of beer-balancing bartender
The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the family of a bartender who balanced beer on her bosom. Exile Brewing created a beer in 2012 called "Ruthie" in honor of Ruth Bisignano, who became famous at her Des Moines bar in the 1950s and 60's by balancing two pint glasses of beer on her … [Read more...]
Two Storm Lake teens accused of stealing alcohol, store clerk faces charges for hitting suspect with SUV
Two teenagers have been charged with stealing 100 dollars worth of alcohol from a Storm Lake gas station -- and a clerk at the Midtown Brew gas station faces charges for allegedly hitting one of the suspects with a vehicle. Police say the alcohol thefts at Midtown Brew happened on three nights … [Read more...]