MARION, Iowa (Iowa’s News Now) — One person is in custody after a domestic dispute turned into a standoff with police in Marion. Officers were called to a home in the 1400 block of 44th Street just after 8:30 a.m. Saturday. First responders reported threats were made as they approached the apartment involving a firearm. Neighbors were evacuated from the complex and a special response team was deployed to try and de-escalate the situation. By 1:00 p.m., officers were able to secure both the man and the woman safely. The man was taken into custody and faces multiple charges. Authorities did not release his name. Investigators searched the room they were in and found several guns.
DES MOINES, Iowa (Iowa’s News Now) — A woman convicted in the murder of an Ottumwa woman has had her appeal denied. On July 1, 2021, Michelle Boat, 59, of Pella, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the May 2020 stabbing death of Tracy Mondabough, 46. A jury found Boat guilty of first-degree murder in May 2021. During her trial, Boat testified that she was heartbroken when her husband left her for Mondabough. On Wednesday, the Iowa Court of Appeals denied Boat’s request for an appeal. Boat argued that the district court “abused its discretion when denying her motion to strike a potential juror for cause, should have granted her motion for mistrial based on prosecutorial error because the State encouraged the jury to consider punishment during its closing argument, and misapplied the law when determining her reasonable ability to pay restitution during sentencing by considering assets not subject to execution.” In the ruling, the court concluded “the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying Boat’s motion to strike a potential juror for cause or in denying her motion for mistrial based on prosecutorial error. The court also did not err in considering Boat’s assets that are exempt from execution when determining her reasonable ability to pay category B restitution.”
DES MOINES, Iowa (Iowa’s News Now) — Gov. Kim Reynolds’ proposed bill that would group Iowa’s mental health services with its substance abuse treatment plans is moving forward at the statehouse. There are currently 13 mental health services and 19 substance abuse regions in Iowa. The new bill would group both types of services into seven behavioral health districts, as well as shift disability services to the Health and Human Services (HHS) Division of Aging and Disability. Kelly Garcia, director of HHS, says the current system is fractured and broken, and said unifying mental health and substance abuse services will give Iowans better access to services. Most comments during Thursday’s subcommittee meeting were supportive of the proposal. There were some concerns around funding for providers, and making sure services for children were also addressed. The new bill would also get rid of core services that mental health providers must offer and, instead, those services would be listed in contracts between whichever agency ends up running the new program and HHS. If the bill gets signed into law, there would a year-long transition process, with the new system starting in July of 2025.
DES MOINES, Iowa (Iowa’s News Now) — Iowa GOP senators have received backlash after advancing a bill that would change the certification process for public workers’ unions. Under the proposal, a union would be decertified if a public employer fails to submit a list of employees eligible to vote in their recertification election. State Sen. Jason Schultz said about 41% of Iowa’s employers aren’t submitting the list and that it’s the unions who are causing this problem. Democrat Sen. Nate Boulton said this bill will punish union workers for their employers mistakes, further straining those relationships. He also claimed it would create a trap door for public employers to get rid of unions.
