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Iowa early News Headlines: Thursday, Feb. 13 2020

News

February 13th, 2020 by Ric Hanson

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:45 a.m. CST

WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party has resigned after a disastrous caucus process beset by technical glitches led to a dayslong delay in reporting the results, inconsistencies in the numbers and no clear winner. Chairman Troy Price announced his resignation Wednesday, saying Iowa Democrats deserved better than what happened on caucus night. After a breakdown in the Feb. 3 caucuses, it took until Feb. 6 for the state party to issue what it said are complete results. In those figures, Pete Buttigieg leads Bernie Sanders by 0.09 percentage points. The Associated Press hasn’t declared a winner because it is not confident in the accuracy of the results. A partial recanvass is also underway.

FORT DODGE, Iowa (AP) — A Fort Dodge man accused of beating a pastor to death outside a central Iowa church has been found mentally unfit to stand trial. Webster County Judge Gina Badding on Wednesday ordered 36-year-old Joshua Pendleton to undergo treatment at the Iowa Medical Classification Facility. Badding last month suspended proceedings in the case and ordered a mental competency evaluation after Pendleton’s attorney said he had been acting irrationally. Pendleton is charged with first-degree murder in the Oct. 2 slaying of the Rev. Allen Henderson. The 64-year-old Henderson was senior pastor at St. Paul and had served as a chaplain to first responders.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A judge has ruled incompetent for trial a woman accused of hate crimes in the Des Moines area, including intentionally running over a girl she thought was Mexican. Nicole Poole is charged with assault in violation of individual rights for an incident at a convenience store and with attempted murder. Police have said she intentionally ran over two children with her sport utility vehicle. Both children survived. The judge ruled Tuesday after hearing evidence and arguments on the matter that Poole is suffering from a mental disorder. She ordered state treatment for Poole so she can be restored to competency.

CHARLES CITY, Iowa (AP) — A Waterloo man charged in the 2017 killing of a Grundy Center man has been found guilty of first-degree murder and a weapons count. The Courier reports that a jury found 29-year-old Armando Adame III guilty Wednesday for the Oct. 25, 2017, shooting death of 27-year-old Michael Bruce Johns. Police say the men had been arguing as they drove around Floyd County when they stopped on a gravel road. Police say Adame pulled Johns from the vehicle and shot him in the head with a sawed-off shotgun. Adame faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole when he’s sentenced at a later date.