From the KCRG-TV9 Newsroom:
The Iowa Attorney General’s office says a deadly officer-involved shooting in Black Hawk County last year was justified. Two Grundy County deputies and an Iowa State Trooper fired at Benjamin Sink back in November. Investigators say Sink had fired at authorities first after a chase that started in Grundy County. None of the officers were hurt. At the time of the shooting, Sink had warrants for stalking and violating several no-contact orders.
The ACLU is asking a federal appeals court to revive a lawsuit against the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office—a case centered on jail fees charged to inmates. This lawsuit was first filed last year, accusing the sheriff’s office of forcing people to pay jail fees before release, sometimes without fully understanding what they were signing. A federal judge dismissed the case. Now, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals heard from supporters of the lawsuit who say those fees were unconstitutional. County officials argue the case never met the legal standard to move forward. If the Appeals Court rules against the county, the case would return to a lower court for further proceedings.
New court filings show former Des Moines Schools Superintendent Ian Roberts is taking a plea deal in his federal criminal case. Roberts is originally from Guyana. He was arrested after fleeing from ICE agents in Des Moines. He faces a series of charges, including illegally possessing a gun and making a false statement for employment. We don’t know the details of the plea deal yet. A hearing is set for later this month.
The Adjutant General of the Iowa National Guard, Major General Stephen Osborn, spoke to legislators in the annual Condition of the Guard Address yesterday. He honored those Iowa National Guard members killed and injured in Syria last month. Before the address, the Iowa Senate passed a resolution to honor Staff Sergeants Edgar Torres-Tovar and Nate Howard. Their portraits are now displayed in the Capitol Rotunda. Major General Osborn says the Guard’s presence in the Middle East will wind down. He says 200 of the 1,800 deployed could come home as soon as the end of February. The rest are expected to be back in Iowa in 90 days.
The Iowa City Community School District held a ribbon cutting last night for its Center for Innovation. The center is located on North Dubuque Road in Iowa City. The center includes the district’s Junior Achievement Dream Accelerator, which it says is a hands-on interactive career exploration program for high school students. The center also features Career Academy classrooms and a new welcome center.
