DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Administrators say a swastika was carved into an elevator on campus at Drake University in Des Moines and a racist message left outside an African-American student’s dorm room in a cowardly attack.

The Des Moines Register reports that the message was left on a whiteboard on the door of a first-year student over the weekend. In an email to students Sunday, Drake University President Marty Martin called the content of the message “the most offensive of racial epithets” and the vandalism “cowardly.” He says the markings and message have been removed.

Martin encouraged anyone with information about the vandalism to report it.

Two passengers in an SUV were injured Sunday night, when their vehicle was rear- ended by another SUV on northbound Interstate 29 in Mills County. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 2015 Ford Explorer driven by 36-year old Russell D. Hill, of Omaha, rear-ended a 2000 Ford Explorer, driven by 43-year old Jeremy Ewoldt, of Persia. The accident happened at around 9:33-p.m. Sunday, near mile marker 42.

Following the collision, Hill’s SUV came to rest in the median, facing south. Ewoldt pulled his SUV onto the right shoulder of I-29 and stopped. Two passengers in his Explorer were transported by EMS to a local hospital. Their names were not immediately available.

The accident remains under investigation.

A collision between a car and an SUV Sunday night in Mills County, sent two people from Nebraska to the hospital. The Iowa State Patrol reports the drivers of the vehicles, 42-year old Ko Be, and 23-year old Johnathan Lindeman, both of Omaha, were transported to Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs and the UNMC in Omaha, respectively, with Lindeman transported to the UNMC by LifeNet, and Ko Be transported to Mercy, by Pacific Junction Rescue. Both drivers were wearing their seat belts.

The Patrol says Ko Be was traveling north on Interstate 29 at around 10:15-p.m., when Be fell asleep at the wheel of a 2007 Toyota Highlander. The SUV struck the rear of a 2002 Ford Escort, driven by Lindeman, near mile marker 34.5, causing the Ford to leave the road to the right and rollover, before coming to rest on the edge of a farm field.

The Toyota also left I-29 and came to rest near the edge of a farm field.

Adams County Sheriff’s Deputies, Sunday night, arrested a central Iowa woman on drug charges late Sunday night. 19-year old Skyler Rose Suzanne Wambold, of Ames, was pulled over for speeding and an insufficient number of headlights, at around 11:42-p.m., at the intersection of Highway 25 and 240th Street.

While speaking with Wambold, Deputies detected the strong odor of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle. A probable cause search was conducted, which resulted in the discovery of numerous items of drug paraphernalia, a small amount of marijuana, and several rolled marijuana joints.

Wambold was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance/1st offense and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Her cash bond was set at $1,300. A juvenile in the vehicle was cited into court for Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Additional charges are pending.

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

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A state agency is collecting data to understand whether the Iowa Legislature’s move to cut funding for Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers is resulting in less access to reproductive health care. The Department of Human Services has been compiling data on its state-run family planning program since it took effect in July. It follows a decision to forgo federal funding and spend state money on a family planning program that excludes clinics affiliated with abortion services.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Sexual assault cases move ahead slowly in Iowa because of a testing backlog at the state crime lab. The Des Moines Register reports that 405 sexual assault cases were waiting for DNA testing at the state crime lab at the end of August.

WOODWARD, Iowa (AP) — A trail bridge in central Iowa will go dark 90 minutes earlier in hopes of curbing loud noises and vandalism, a move welcomed by residents but that some cyclists say is disappointing. KCCI-TV reports that the Boone County Conservation Board decided to start turning off the lights on the High Trestle Trail near Woodward at 10:30 p.m. starting Sept. 25. Some who live near the trail say the noise level has gotten out of control. Others say the change is punishing people who don’t break the rules.

MISSOURI VALLEY, Iowa (AP) — Monarch butterflies will be the focus of a workshop at the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge near the Iowa-Nebraska border. The workshop will be held at the refuge on Sept. 23 at 10 a.m.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Sexual assault cases move ahead slowly in Iowa because of a testing backlog at the state crime lab. The Des Moines Register reports that 405 sexual assault cases were waiting for DNA testing at the state crime lab at the end of August. That’s up from the end of 2014 when 265 cases awaited processing.

The delays mean that victims of sexual assault in Iowa may have to wait months for testing before an arrest can be made. Marshalltown Police Chief Michael Tupper says the delay is the worst part for victims waiting for their cases to be resolved.

At the same time, the lean state budget makes it difficult to fill openings at the lab or add new positions.