The Iowa State Patrol has identified a bicyclist who was struck and killed Thursday evening, in Muscatine County. Authorities say 56-year old Michael Joseph Mann, of Muscatine, was riding his bike southbound on Moscow Road, south of 140th Street, when he was hit from behind by an SUV at around 4:50-p.m. Mann died at the scene. The driver of the SUV was identified as 59-year old Timothy Lee Miller, of Muscatine. The accident remains under investigation.

A person being pursued by an Iowa State Patrol Trooper early this (Saturday) morning, in Story County, died in a crash. The Patrol says a Trooper initiated a traffic stop on I-35 southbound near Story City at around 12:25-a.m., when the vehicle sped-off. At Exit 121, the 1997 Toyota Avalon crashed and struck a parked 2016 Volvo semi which was parked in the rest area. The unidentified driver of the Toyota died at the scene. No further details have been released.

Red Oak Police report the arrest at around 1 o’clock this (Saturday) morning, of 54-year old Bradley Dean Gary, of Red Oak. Authorities say Gary was taken into custody in the 2400 block of North Broadway. He was placed under arrest on a valid Pottawattamie County warrant for OWI/2nd offense, an aggravated misdemeanor, and transported to the Montgomery County Jail, where bond was set at $2,000.

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

MONTEZUMA, Iowa (AP) — Part of the case against a former farmhand charged with first-degree murder in the killing of 20-year-old University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts appears to be in jeopardy because of a botched Miranda warning. The Des Moines Register reports that prosecutors have agreed to exclude some statements at the trial 25-year-old Cristhian Bahena Rivera reportedly made to police over a more than 6-hour period the day Tibbetts’ body was found.

STUART, Iowa (AP) — Authorities have identified officers and a suspect wounded in a shootout as law enforcement sought to serve an arrest warrant. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation says in a news release that Guthrie County Sheriff’s Deputies Steven Henry and Jim Mink suffered gunshot wounds, as did 52-year old suspect Randall Comly. Investigators say the shooting happened late Thursday night as the officers sought to serve felony warrants on Comly.

UNDATED (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court has ended an effort in Iowa City to save an elementary school, saying that even as residents are voting on a preservation proposal, the district has a right to demolish the building. The decision Friday comes in a lawsuit patrons of the Iowa City Community School District filed in 2017, after the school board refused to place on a special election ballot a measure asking voters whether to approve demolition of Hoover Elementary School.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — In the weeks after an August groundbreaking ceremony for a $136 million federal courthouse, an unusual building has slowly arisen in the heart of downtown Des Moines. The two-story white building with wood siding and a gable roof would fit in well in the suburbs but at this spot, along the Des Moines River and facing the three-story elegant City Hall, it’s an oddity. Project manager Brad Thomason says the building made sense because a lot of space was needed on a small site.

(Radio Iowa) — The Iowa Insurance Division has issued a cease and desist order against the owner of funeral homes in Emmetsburg and Graettinger. Division spokesman, Chance McElhaney says the order involves pre-sales.”The Iowa Insurance Division has ordered Andrew Joyce of Joyce Funeral Home (Emmetsburg) and Joyce-Alesch Funeral Home (Graettinger) to cease and desist acting as a pre-need seller or as a sales agent,” McElhaney says.

McElhaney says Joyce has used deceptive and fraudulent activities in handling the sales. “You have to place the funds in trust as required by Iowa law,” McElhaney says, “Some of those funds have been co-mingled with personal and unrelated expenses. You can’t sell these things without a license and that was found to have happened. There’s other violations here.” McElhaney says they are seeking help in determining how many people are involved.

“The Iowa Insurance Division is looking for folks who may’ve purchased or otherwise worked with Andrew Joyce, Joyce-Alesch, Joyce Funeral Home, and they believe that they have pre-need funeral arrangements. We want to make sure that folks that may’ve done business — that we are aware of it.” He says they have sent out letters to those who they know were working with the two funeral homes.

This latest action follows a recent request for a receivership to try and protect the funds that are held in trust by the funeral homes.

MONTEZUMA, Iowa (AP) — Part of the case against a former farmhand charged with first-degree murder in the killing of 20-year-old University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts appears to be in jeopardy because an officer failed to properly read him his Miranda rights.

Prosecutors have agreed to exclude at trial some statements that 25-year-old Cristhian Bahena Rivera made to police, the Des Moines Register reported . Court documents prosecutors filed Friday acknowledge that the initial Miranda warning given to Rivera around 11:30 p.m. on Aug. 20, 2018, was incomplete because the officer “inadvertently” failed to inform Rivera that anything he said could be used against him in court.
His Miranda rights were accurately read to him a second time at 5:50 a.m. the following day as police were in a cornfield where Tibbetts’ body was found.

Tibbetts disappeared while out for a run July 18, 2018, in Brooklyn, Iowa. Investigators recovered her body a month later. She had been stabbed to death. Prosecutors agree in their filings Friday that any statements Rivera made between 11:30 p.m. and 5:50 a.m. should be suppressed but argue they should be able to use those statements to rebut testimony. Defense attorneys for Rivera want the statements fully suppressed.

Chief Deputy Attorney General Eric Tabor on Friday declined to comment or answer questions about which of Rivera’s statements would be excluded from trial evidence. Police have said Rivera led them to Tibbetts’ body after confessing during a lengthy interrogation to following Tibbetts in his car, getting out on foot and chasing after her. Rivera told investigators that he panicked after Tibbetts threatened to call police on her cellphone. Police said Rivera told investigators he blacked out and later came to when he was unloading her bloody body from the trunk of his car.

Rivera is set to appear in court Oct. 22, when a judge will decide what evidence will be allowed at his trial, which is set to start in February.

DES MOINES, Iowa — The Division of Criminal Investigation’s (DCI) Major Crimes Unit said Friday afternoon, they are continuing to investigate an officer-involved shooting that took place late Thursday night, in Stuart. Authorities say once the investigation is complete, the DCI will provide the Adair County Attorney’s Office with all reports, evidence, and body camera video collected as part of this investigation. This process may take several weeks to complete.

Authorities investigate the scene after multiple law enforcement officers were shot Thursday, Oct. 17, 2019 in Stuart, Iowa. A man opened fire on sheriff’s deputies serving a warrant at a central Iowa apartment complex overnight, wounding two of them and setting off a gunbattle in which he, too, was wounded, authorities said Friday. (Zach Boyden-Holmes/The Des Moines Register via AP)

At this time, the DCI is releasing the following information concerning the shooting investigation:

On October 17, 2019, at approximately 10:40 p.m., Guthrie County Deputy Kent Gries, Guthrie County Deputy Steven Henry, Guthrie County Deputy Jim Mink, and Stuart Police Officer Tyler DeFrancisco attempted to serve an arrest warrant on 52-year old Randall Comly at 615 SW 7th Street, Apartment #1, in Stuart. The law enforcement officers were attempting to arrest Comly on outstanding felony warrants.

The officers knocked on the apartment door, where they were met by an adult male, not Randall Comly. The officers entered the apartment, and while searching for Comly, the officers were met with gunfire. The officers returned fire. In the exchange of gunfire two deputies sustained non-life threatening gunshot wounds and a third deputy sustained a gunpowder burn. Comly sustained a non-life threatening gunshot wound. All those injured were transported to Des Moines hospitals. Also inside the apartment at the time of the shooting were two adult females, neither of which was injured.

More than 50 police officers, deputies, and troopers responded to the report of shots fired. Arriving officers were able to secure the area, evacuate neighbors, negotiate a peaceful ending to the incident, and take Comly into custody. He is currently is in law enforcement custody at a Des Moines Hospital on outstanding warrants. No criminal charges have been filed related to this shooting.

Deputy Kent Gries is a 13-year veteran of the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office. Deputy Steven Henry is a seven-year veteran of the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office. Deputy Jim Mink is a five-year veteran of the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office. Officer Tyler DeFrancisco has one year of service with the Stuart Police Department.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — In the weeks after an August groundbreaking ceremony for a $136 million federal courthouse, an unusual building has slowly arisen in the heart of downtown Des Moines. The two-story white building with wood siding and a gable roof would fit in well in the suburbs but at this spot, along the Des Moines River and facing the three-story elegant City Hall, it’s an oddity. Even a city spokesman expressed puzzlement at the house going up downtown.

Project manager Brad Thomason said builder Ryan Companies opted for a building rather than more common trailers for staff because a lot of space was needed on a small site. Office space for up to 24 people was required, and there wasn’t room at the 2-acre site for so many trailers. Thomason also noted that after the seven-story courthouse is completed in 2022, workers will deconstruct the house, which was built with screws rather than nails. All will be reused or donated except components such as insulation and wiring, which will be recycled.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court has ended an effort in Iowa City to save an elementary school, saying that even as residents are voting on a preservation proposal, the district has a right to ignore their views and demolish the building. The decision Friday comes on a lawsuit brought by Iowa City Community School District patrons in 2017, after the school board refused to place on a special election ballot a measure asking voters whether to approve demolition of Hoover Elementary School. The school was dedicated in 1954 by former President Herbert Hoover, an Iowa native.

The state supreme court reversed a lower court’s ruling ordering the vote be held. The high court says state law only allows voters to weigh in on the sale, lease or other disposition of property, not demolition of property. Early voting on the measure opened two weeks ago. Johnson County officials now say votes on the issue won’t be tallied.

(UPDATE 10/21) – She has been found safe. Thank you!

Police in Glenwood are asking for your help in locating a Glenwood teen who has been missing since Thursday. Authorities have circulated a picture of 15-year old Brooklyn Handley. She was last seen wearing black leggings and a hoodie, but authorities say she has probably already changed clothes. If you have seen her or know where she is,  call the Glenwood Police Department at 712-527-4844. No other details concerning her disappearance are currently available.

Brooklyn Handley