A shooting outside a Waterloo strip club early Saturday morning sent two people to the hospital, one with serious injuries. The shooting happened just before 3 a.m. at Fantasy Theatre Live at 1850 W. Airline Highway in Waterloo. Police say both victims were taken to UnityPoint-Allen Hospital in private vehicles after the shooting. One has serious injuries, the other reportedly has non-life threatening wounds. Investigators are still looking into what led to the shooting. Police have not made any arrests.
A judge has convicted a Waterloo man for what prosecutors described as the revenge killing of another man. Judge Linda Fangman ordered 22-year-old Raymond Birden Jr. sentenced to life in prison for the 2018 death of 22-year-old Shavondes Martin. Martin was acquitted earlier that year of killing Birden’s brother two years before. Martin had been one of three people charged with the 2016 drive-by shooting of Birden’s brother, Otavious Brown. Prosecutors say Birden searched for Martin on May 31, 2018. Martin was found hours later shot to death in a Waterloo alley.
Des Moines police are investigating a body found in the Des Moines River Saturday. The Des Moines Fire Department’s Water Emergency Team helped recover the body. No other information is available.
The Iowa Supreme Court has ruled that employers cannot subject all warehouse employees to random drug testing by simply designating them as having “safety sensitive” jobs. In a 4-3 ruling, the court found that companies must consider the specific duties of each worker when designing safety-based drug testing programs and not just where they work. The majority rejected an argument that courts should not second-guess determinations made by employers on which jobs are more dangerous than others. The decision interpreted a 1998 Iowa law that regulates how employers can conduct unannounced testing for drugs and alcohol in workplaces.
A 53-year-old Waterloo woman was sentenced Friday to nearly six years in prison for stealing almost a half million dollars from her husband’s elderly aunt, who was blind, had difficulty hearing, and suffered from diminished cognitive abilities. Kimberly Henny had power of attorney for the aunt’s medical decisions, and expanded that to cover financial decisions. She claimed she had permission to use the money to help support her charities, Healing Harvest Ministries, Special Needs Services, and Perspectives Behavioral Health. Prosecutors say instead, she used the money for personal expenses.
Evictions are expected to increase in Iowa after the federal moratorium on them ends July 31. Alex Kornya with Iowa Legal Aid said he is also concerned that evictions will increase now that Iowa quit participating in enhanced unemployment benefits this month and people no longer receive an extra $300 a week federal benefit. The state has set aside $195 million to help with outstanding rent, but so far only $2.55 million of that has been distributed. A separate program in the Des Moines area has already handed out $8 million out of a $14 million pot of money.
A Muscatine County jury has found a man guilty of first-degree murder in connection with the shooting death of his girlfriend. Jurors on Friday found David Hatfield guilty in the death of 18-year-old Kaitlyn Palmer. Prosecutors say Hatfield shot Palmer in the head with a .22-caliber handgun as she slept at Saulsbury Recreation Area in rural Muscatine County. Prosecutors argued Hatfield shot Palmer because of an unwanted pregnancy. Defense lawyers contended Palmer shot herself. First-degree murder carries a mandatory sentence in Iowa of life in prison. Hatfield is scheduled to be sentenced July 30.
