DES MOINES, Iowa (KCCI) — Authorities on Friday found a loaded handgun in a woman’s carry-on luggage at the Des Moines International Airport. It’s the second firearm detected this year at a Des Moines airport security checkpoint, according to a news release from the Transportation Security Administration.

The woman told authorities that she forgot it was in the luggage. The Des Moines Police Department says she was cited and then released. In addition to any action taken by law enforcement, TSA fines passengers who bring a firearm to a TSA checkpoint with a civil penalty up to approximately $15,000, revokes TSA PreCheck eligibility for at least five years and may conduct enhanced screening to ensure there are no other threats present.

“Passengers are allowed to travel with their firearms and ammunition as long as they follow the proper procedures,” Iowa TSA Federal Security Director John Bright said in the release. “Responsible firearm owners always know where their guns are, and they should never bring them to the security checkpoint in carry-on luggage.”

Check the TSA’s website for information about traveling with firearms.

Seven firearms were detected at Des Moines airport security checkpoints in total last year.

DES MOINES, Iowa (KCCI) — Transgender Iowans may be considered disabled if an Iowa lawmaker’s efforts to remove civil rights protections for gender identity succeed. House file 2082 would amend the Iowa Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, religion, ancestry, or disability. If passed, the bill would strike gender identity protections from that list.

The bill author, Rep. Jeff Shipley, said he doesn’t want to end civil rights protections for transgender people, just change how they are protected. Instead of explicitly listing gender identity protections, he wants to expand the definition of disability discrimination.

Shipley said he wants gender dysphoria, which is the discomfort someone may feel toward their assigned sex at birth, to be considered a disability. By expanding the definition, he says transgender people will still be protected by the Civil Rights Act.
However, some LGBTQ+ activists are worried that striking gender identity from the list of protections puts transgender Iowans at risk of discrimination, even if the disability definition is expanded.

A subcommittee will host a hearing for the bill at noon Wednesday, Jan. 31, in room 102 of the statehouse.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KCAU) — A former nurse from Sioux City who stole drugs such as fentanyl and morphine from her hospital will serve nine months in federal prison. According to a release from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa, Morgan Miralles, 32, was sentenced Friday in Sioux City. After her prison term, she will also be under supervised release for three additional years. There is no parole in the federal system.

Miralles originally pleaded guilty in August 2023 to one count of acquiring a controlled substance by means of misrepresentation, fraud, deception and subterfuge, and one count of false statements relating to health care matters.

Evidence from the case indicates that she was stealing drugs intended for patient use – fentanyl, morphine, hydromorphine and hydrocodone – and kept them for her own personal use. She was stealing these drugs as early as April 2020 and through August 2022. In order to cover her tracks, Miralles falsified documents “on an almost weekly basis” by omitting certain information from logs. She also admitted to stealing Benadryl after not receiving a promotion as a way to get revenge.

Miralles will surrender to the Bureau of Prisons at an undetermined date.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Officials with the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, Saturday, announced that after a five-year hiatus,  the City will once again serve as an overnight stay for RAGBRAI 2024. It’s the 51st year for the Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa that begins with bicyclists dipping their tires in the Missouri River. Eight Iowa communities along the RAGBRAI route serve as “host” communities, beginning with Glenwood. This year, the overnight stays include Red Oak, Atlantic, Winterset, Knoxville, Ottumwa, Mt. Pleasant, and Burlington. This will be the eighth shortest route (434-miles) but the hilliest ever, with 18,741 feet of climb.

The route and host cities announcement came Saturday night in Des Moines, at the 2024 RAGBRAI  Route Announcement Party. Atlantic will host cyclists Monday, July 22, 2024.

Chamber Executive Director Bailey Smith said “We are excited to see RAGBRAI has named Atlantic as a host community once again.” Smith said  “RAGBRAI has always expressed how much they love coming to Atlantic and we’re excited to show not just the state of Iowa, but cyclists from around the country and world what kind of people and community we are.”

Atlantic last served as a host community in 2019, welcoming just under 20,000 people to town. The committee, made up of 25 committee chairs, and over 300 day-of volunteers, raised a record $50,000 that was divided between the Atlantic Police Department, Atlantic Volunteer Fire Department, Atlantic School Boosters Club and the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce. Smith is looking forward to having another record year.

Photo of the 2019 RAGBRAI in Atlantic (Photo courtesy Bailey Smith)

“RAGBRAI gives Atlantic a lot of positive exposure while supporting local organizations and non-profits. We look forward to partnering with community leading entities as well as community minded individuals to have a successful RAGBRAI 2024,” stated Smith.

Details regarding committee and volunteer needs will be made available in the coming weeks and Smith asks for patience while Chamber staff work to gather information.

For more information regarding housing, vendors opportunities, etc., visit www.atlanticragbrai.com or call 712-250-5343. RAGBRAI will be held July 20 – July 27.

Centerville, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Public Safety reports that on Friday, January 19, 2024, at approximately 12:50 p.m., Centerville law enforcement and emergency services were dispatched to 1417 Drake Avenue on the report of an injured child. Responding officers and EMS providers found 2-year-old Journey Marberry injured inside the home. She was immediately taken to MercyOne Hospital in Centerville and then to the University of Iowa Hospital in Iowa City.

On Saturday, January 27, Journey succumbed to her injuries and served as a donor to aid other families.

At approximately 12:30 p.m., members of the Iowa State Patrol tactical team arrested 48-year-old Roger Gillespie, of Centerville, on a warrant for Child Endangerment Causing Death, a class B felony. Gillespie, who was Journey’s caretaker at the time of her injuries, was taken into custody without incident. He is currently being held in the Appanoose County Jail.

The arrest of Gillespie was the result of a joint investigation by the Centerville Police Department, Appanoose County Sheriff’s Office, and the Major Crime Unit of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

Roger Gillespie

Journey Marberry

Questions on this investigation can be directed to Centerville Police Chief Tom Demry at 641-437-7100.

A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

(Buena Vista County, Iowa) – Two people were injured during a collision Saturday morning in northwest Iowa. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 2013 Chevy Tahoe driven by 19-year-old Joseph Thanyiel Dax, of Storm Lake, was traveling north on Highway 71 at around mile marker 188, when for reasons unknown, the vehicle crossed the center line of the road at around 5:53-a.m. The SUV crossed into the path of and collided with, a southbound 2022 Freightliner semi tractor-trailer, driven by 27-year-old Hunter Lee Coatney, of Pierre City, MO.

Both men were transported to area hospitals. The Patrol says Dax was not wearing a seat belt. The Patrol was assisted at the scene by the Buena Vista and Clay County Sheriff’s Offices, and Sioux Rapids Fire and Rescue.

(Clarinda, Iowa) – The Page County Sheriff’s Office today (Saturday) issued a report with regard to several recent arrests and  two accident investigations. Those arrested include, on:

Jan. 21st: 37-year-old Larry Leroy Schutt, of New Market. He was charged with OWI/1st offense.

Jan. 19: 35-year-old Brent Allen Neal, of Shenandoah, who was booked into the Page County Jail to serve time; 38-year-old Karl James Shade, III, of Shenandoah, was arrested for unlawful possession of prescription drugs and possession of a controlled substance on a second offense; 44-year-old Matthew Ross David Buckridge, of Omaha Nebraska, was arrested for forgery and theft; 39-year-old Jeremy Alex Hansen, of New Market, was booked into the Page County Jail to serve time; and, 20-year-old Joshua Michael Culley, of Shenandoah, was booked into the Page County Jail to serve time.

Jan. 17th: 30-year-old Carmen Nicole Glidden, of Shenandoah, was arrested for child endangerment.

Jan. 16th: 60-year-old Robert Charles Harvey, II, of Omaha, Nebraska, was arrested at the Douglas County, NE., Jail, on a warrant for failure to appear; and,  33-year-old Nicholas Ryan Pruett, of Clarinda, was arrested for violation of a no contact order.

A charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

And, the Page County Sheriff’s Office says there were no injuries reported following a collision January 17th. The report stated the accident happened on Highway 2 and George Crawford Drive. Authorities say William Howard Mintzer was westbound on Highway 2 and driving slower due to road conditions. Another westbound vehicle driven by Grant Lee Plowman attempted to pass Mintzer in the slow lane.

Mintzer attempted to merge into the slow lane to allow Plowman to pass. Both vehicles’ side-view mirrors clipped each other, causing damage to Mintzer’s vehicle. Plowman finished passing Mintzer and merged back into the westbound lane. He slammed on his brakes, and Mintzer could not stop before his vehicle struck Plowman’s vehicle.

And, no one was injured in a single-vehicle accident that happened January 19th, in the 2100 block of M Avenue. The sheriff’s office says Andrew Michael York was driving northbound on M Avenue and 220th Street, when he lost control due to the roadway conditions. His vehicle entered the ditch and struck a road sign.

LISBON, Iowa – Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Safety today (Saturday), issued a follow-up report on an investigation into the 1996 death of a newborn child.

Authorities say on November 10, 1996, the Cedar County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of a deceased newborn at a rural farmstead at 14 Highway 30 near Lisbon, IA.  The caller reported the body of a newborn female had been found in a garbage bag in the barn.  Law enforcement responded to the scene and located a deceased newborn female as reported by the caller.  After an exhaustive investigation, the Cedar County Sheriff’s Office and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) were unable to identify the infant, her parents, or the circumstances surrounding her death.

The unidentified infant was ultimately named “Baby Jane Lincoln” as Highway 30 was previously known as the Old Lincoln Highway. The Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner performed an autopsy on Baby Jane and listed her cause of death to be “probable exposure” and the manner of death to be “undetermined.”

Recent advances in DNA testing have identified the parents of Baby Jane as Luke Dean Wilson (43 years old) and Samantha Light Hope (43 years old). The circumstances surrounding the death of Baby Jane remain under investigation and the public is encouraged to contact the Cedar County Sheriff’s Office should they possess any information that may assist in the investigation.

Additionally, the public is encouraged to contact the Iowa DCI Missing Person Information Clearinghouse at 515-725-6036 if they have any information related to any missing person or unidentified human remains investigation.

No further information will be released at this time.

(Cass County, Iowa) – The Iowa Department of Transportation reports Interstate 80 eastbound at mile marker 48 (about 1 mile east of Walnut), remains closed due to a multiple-vehicle crash that occurred at around 7:50-a.m.

According to reports, two semi’s collided, with multiple vehicles involved in a chain-reaction crash that followed, include an Iowa Western Community College bus. As many as 15 vehicles were said to have been involved at the crash scene.

No injuries have been reported. Persons on the bus were transferred to another bus and continued on to their destination.

RED OAK, Iowa – U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) will host a town hall meeting in Audubon County on February 3rd. Senator Ernst’s office says she looks forward to hearing from constituents in the area about the issues most important to them. This town hall meeting is open to the public.

Saturday, February 3, 2024

Audubon County Town Hall Meeting

10:00am CT

Audubon Rec Center

703 Southside

Audubon, IA