Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Court of Appeals has upheld a $4.9 million jury verdict awarded to a Texas woman after she fell outside a hotel on an icy sidewalk. The court in its ruling Wednesday rejected arguments by Marriott International that the jury’s 2018 verdict was excessive and the result of jury prejudice against the corporation. Brenda Alcala, a software consultant, filed the lawsuit. She was staying at the Bettendorf Courtyard by Marriott in January 2010 when she slipped on ice and broke an ankle.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds says she has appointed a northwest Iowa judge to the Iowa Court of Appeals. Reynolds says in a statement that Paul Ahlers, of Fort Dodge, will succeed Judge Amanda Potterfield, who is retiring from the bench on December 25. She was appointed by Democratic Gov. Chet Culver in 2008. Ahlers is Reynolds’ fourth appointment to the nine-member court.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Two powerful storms threatened to scramble Thanksgiving plans for millions of people during one of the year’s busiest travel weeks. A winter-like storm blamed for one death rolled into the Midwest on Wednesday, dropping heavy snow in parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin. Meanwhile, a so-called bomb cyclone brought snow, wind and rain to the California and Oregon coasts, snarling traffic for hours. In New York, a windy forecast could mean disappointment for fans of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) — A former care provider in Sioux City has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for stealing from her clients. The Sioux City Journal reports that 50-year-old Lisa Sembach-Preston was sentenced Tuesday. The judge also ordered her to repay nearly $85,000 to Crossroads of Western Iowa, a Council Bluffs-based nonprofit that provides services to adults with disabilities and mental illnesses.