From the Associated Press:
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A 41-year-old central Iowa man faces charges alleging that he took part in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building. Chad Heathcote, of Adel, was arrested Wednesday on is charged with two federal felonies: entering and remaining in a restricted building with intent to impede or disrupt an official proceeding and disorderly or disruptive conduct in the Capitol. Court records don’t indicate whether he has an attorney. In charging documents, an FBI agent said witnesses came forward about Heathcote after he bragged in social media postings about being at the Capitol that day and was identified in photos shown in television reports. Agent Tyler Johnson said Heathcote’s cellphone data also indicated that he was inside the Capitol.
OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Bird flu is killing an alarming number of bald eagles and other wild birds, with many sick birds arriving at rehabilitation centers unsteady on their talons and unable to fly. The latest bird flu outbreak of has led to the culling of about 37 million chickens and turkeys in U.S. farms since February, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture has confirmed 956 cases of bird flu in wild birds, including at least 54 bald eagles. The number of wild birds that have died from the virus is likely significantly higher. University of Georgia researcher Rebecca Poulson, who has been studying avian influenza for 15 years, says the wild bird death toll in this outbreak is “unprecedented.”
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A NASA climate research scientist who has spent much of her career explaining how global food production systems must adapt to a changing climate was awarded the World Food Prize at a ceremony at the U.S. Department of State in Washington. Cynthia Rosenzweig, an agronomist and climatologist, was recognized Thursday for innovative modeling of the impact of climate change on food production. She is a senior research scientist at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York. The $250,000 World Food Prize Foundation award recognized Rosenzweig efforts to draw together scientists from around the world from many disciplines to advance methods for improving predictions of the future performance of agricultural and food systems as the global climate changes.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Democrats have begun making their case for why the Iowa caucus should remain the first step in the party’s presidential nominating process. The state party submitted a letter of intent to the Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee, promising to make changes in response to criticism of past events, including to make it more inclusive. State Democratic officials expressed optimism even while acknowledging they face skepticism from many national counterparts who have long questioned why Iowa and New Hampshire — both largely rural states with overwhelmingly white populations — should begin the nomination process. The Democratic National Committee decided last month to stop automatically allowing Iowa to hold the first presidential tilt.
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — An Iowa state board has approved an $8 million payment to an Illinois man who was left permanently disabled when he was hit in 2019 by a state Transportation Department snow plow. The Des Moines Register reports that on Monday, the three-member Iowa State Appeal Board approved the settlement to 64-year-old Terry Bunting of Viola, Illinois. Officials say Bunting was clearing the windshield of his semitrailer after pulling over on U.S. Highway 67 in Le Claire when he was hit by the blade of a passing plow. The impact caused acute kidney and spine injuries and multiple broken bones and left Bunting paralyzed. Experts estimated the cost Bunting’s future medical and other care could exceed $7 million, on top of the $1.25 million he’s already accrued.
DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — The greyhounds are racing again in Dubuque, Iowa, but after a shortened season ends in May, there will be only three tracks left in the country. Later this year, that number will dwindle to only two, both in West Virginia. It’s been a long slide for greyhound racing, which reached its peak in the 1980s when there were more than 50 tracks scattered across 19 states. Since then, increased concerns about how the dogs are treated along with an explosion of gambling options have nearly killed the sport. Steve Sarras, president of the West Virginia Kennel Owners Association, says he’s confident racing will continue in that state thanks to support from legislators.
