A former Waterloo teacher who stole tens of thousands of dollars from the teachers union to feed a gambling habit has been sentenced to eight months in federal prison. 59-year-old Anthony Dehl was sentenced Friday in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids. Dehl entered a plea of guilty in February to wire fraud. Prosecutors say Dehl took more than $54,000 from the union’s accounts over about five years, when he was the union’s treasurer, withdrawing most of it at a casino. Investigators say Dehl concealed his scheme by submitting false treasurer reports and other yearly reports to the organization.
Gov. Kim Reynolds says she will require students to spend at least half of their education time in classrooms when school opens across the state this fall. Reynolds’ decision will alter plans suggested by some districts to limit in-person classes to one day a week for most students with online learning on other days. The governor says districts can seek waivers from the 50% requirement to the state Education Department. The “in class” presumption was included in a law passed last month by the Iowa General Assembly. There will be no change in the Education Department’s recommendation that districts not require students and teachers wear masks in school.
Iowa health officials said yesterday that a “significant number” of coronavirus tests were not reported over the weekend due to a backlog in the department’s electronic reporting system. The Iowa Department of Public Health said its COVID-19 website will continue to update informatoin, and noted in a news release that reported daily case counts from last week will be adjusted as it processes the backlog. As of late morning yesterday, the Iowa website had confirmed 661 additional COVID-19 cases in the previous 24 hours, bringing to 38,564 the number of positive cases since the outbreak began. Seven additional COVID-19 deaths brought the state’s death toll to 792.
Iowa’s unemployment rate dropped to 8.0% in June as the state’s economy continued to recover after being hit hard by efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Iowa Workforce Development reported Friday that the 8.0% unemployment rate was down from 10.2% in May. The number of unemployed residents dropped from 173,000 in May to 131,200 in June. Iowa’s unemployment rate remains far higher than before the coronavirus pandemic, as the jobless rate was 2.7% in June 2019. But the current rate is far lower than the national unemployment rate in June, which was 11.1%.
The U.S. government has executed an Iowa chemistry student-turned-meth kingpin convicted of killing two children and three adults nearly 20 years ago. It was the third execution by the federal government in one week after a 17-year hiatus. Dustin Honken, who prosecutors said killed key witnesses to stop them from testifying in his drug case, received a lethal injection at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana.
Additional Linn County offices will reopen to the public today on an appointment-only basis as part of a phased approach to reopening. This includes the Oxley public service center, community services building, Harris building, secondary road department, and Wickiup Hill. Anyone entering county buildings will be required to wear a face covering and social distance. COVID-19 symptom screening will also be in place. The Linn County Sheriff’s Office expects to reopen to the public within the next few weeks following installation of protective equipment in public service areas designed to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Josef Newgarden led nearly wire-to-wire Saturday night to win the IndyCar race at Iowa Speedway, giving team owner Roger Penske a sweep of the weekend Iowa double-header and his fourth victory across three car series over the weekend. Will Power finished second after wrecking out of the doubleheader opener Friday. Graham Rahal finished third for his first podium in more than a year; you heard him on KXEL last week. Friday night’s Iowa race winner Simon Pagenaud came from the back to finish fourth and series leader Scott Dixon was fifth.
A legislative panel has approved a plan by Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate to send absentee ballot request forms to all registered voters, just as he did before the June primary, to help voters concerned about going to polls in person amid the coronavirus pandemic. Pate says a public health disaster persists. In a proposed emergency election directive, Pate sought Friday to use federal funds to mail absentee ballot requests to active registered voters for the Nov. 3 election. He says he’s consulted with all 99 county auditors and some say they cannot send absentee ballot request forms to voters…so it’s up to his office to do so statewide.
One person was hurt in a shooting early yesterday morning in the 500 block of 12th Street Southeast in Cedar Rapids. Officers responded to a report of shots fired just before 12:30 a.m. yesterday. While they were there a 32-year-old man walked into Mercy Medical Center to be treated for two gunshot wounds. He’s expected to survive. Investigators believe he got shot at a party following an argument. Police say the victim is not cooperating with the investigation.
A correctional officer was injured during an inmate attack at the Iowa Medical and Classification Center in Coralville. It happened around 7 o’clock Friday night. Authorities say the inmate became aggressive and started throwing chairs. An officer responded by deploying spray to subdue the inmate. That did not work, and the inmate then charged the officer, punching and choking the officer. Other staff responded and pulled the inmate off the officer. The inmate was not hurt. The officer was treated for minor injuries and returned to duty. The incident remains under investigation.
Test Iowa sites in Storm Lake and Marshalltown have been moved to new locations. The Storm Lake site moved from the high school to Sunrise Pointe Golf Course. The Marshalltown site moved from Marshalltown Community College to the Marshall County Sheriff’s Office. The moves are to allow preparations at both sites for the start of the upcoming school year.
