Picketing began at 7 a.m. at John Deere facilities in Waterloo, following declaration of a strike at midnight by UAW workers. Some 10,000 union workers at Deere are now on strike, including 6,600 in Iowa. This is the most significant work stoppage at Deere in nearly 40 years.
From the Associated Press (11:20 a.m.):
DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) – A Davenport police officer shot a man police say was armed and refused police commands to lower his gun. The Quad-City Times reports the shooting happened Wednesday afternoon as police tried to arrest the man on an outstanding warrant. Police say the man refused to give himself up and refused to put down the gun before he was shot. Police say the man was taken to a Davenport hospital, but have given no information on the man’s medical condition or whether he survived. Police say the officer who shot the man has been placed on administrative leave, per department policy anytime there is a police shooting. Police have not released the names of the man shot or the officer who shot him.
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – Police say a violent carjacking that injured a woman in Council Bluffs ended in a crash before the suspect could cross the Missouri River into Nebraska. Police say the incident began Wednesday night, when a man’s vehicle was hit from behind. Police say when the man got out to inspect the damage, someone from the other vehicle jumped into his car and drove off. Police say the victim’s wife was a passenger in the car and was seriously injured when she fell into the roadway as the carjacker sped off. Police say officers used a maneuver that caused the fleeing car to crash before it reached the Nebraska side of the bridge. The suspect was injured and taken to an Omaha, Nebraska, hospital.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – An Iowa man has been arrested in a fatal crash that happened in August and was instigated, police say, by a display of road rage. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office says in a news release that 32-year-old Steven Elmer Clark, of Indianola, was arrested Tuesday after he turned himself in on counts of vehicular homicide by driving recklessly and vehicular homicide by drag racing, Investigators say Clark and another man, 53-year-old John Schmidt, of Pleasantville, were drag racing Aug. 26 at speeds of over 100 mph on U.S. Highway 65 in Polk County when Schmidt swerved toward Clark’s truck. Investigators say Schmidt then lost control, crossed the highway’s median and was hit by two vehicles in the northbound lanes. Schmidt died at the scene.
ORANGE CITY, Iowa (AP) – A 71-year-old Spirit Lake man has again been found guilty of murder in a second trial in the May 2020 death of a Cleghorn man. The Sioux City Journal reports that a Sioux County jury on Tuesday found Gregg Eugene Winterfeld guilty of second-degree murder in the death of 58-year-old Grant Wilson. Wilson was found dead in a rural Ireron, Iowa, home, and investigators said Winterfeld shot the younger man during an argument. Winterfeld was charged with first-degree murder, but a jury in April found him guilty of second-degree murder. Before Winterfeld could be sentenced, a judge ordered a new trial after determining an error had been made during the jury selection process. Winterfeld faces up to 50 years in prison when he’s sentenced later.
UNION, Iowa (AP) – Police say a 74-year-old man found dead in his central Iowa home this week was killed, and detectives have arrested a 22-year-old Arkansas man in the case. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation says Steve Reece was found dead Tuesday morning in a bedroom in his home in Union, and investigators determined he had been killed. Deputies with the Hardin County Sheriff’s Office soon arrested 22-year-old Osborn Gavel, of Baxter, Arkansas, on suspicion of first-degree murder. Officials say Gavel was among several people who stayed in Reece’s home Monday night and believe Gavel hit the older man, leading to his death.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Voters in central Iowa elected Republican Jon Dunwell to fill an open state House seat in a special election held after the incumbent lawmaker resigned. Dunwell defeated Democrat Steve Mullan on Tuesday in House District 29 seat, which represents Newton and other smaller communities in Jasper County. The seat became open when Democratic incumbent Wes Breckenridge resigned after accepting a job at the Iowa Law Enforcement Academy. Dunwell ran for the seat in 2020 and lost to Breckenridge. He is a pastor and works as a financial services representative. Mullan is a retired teacher who serves on the Newton City Council. Republicans now hold a 60 to 40 majority in the House.
