Police say a drunk driver is to blame for a deadly crash in central Iowa Friday morning. A Boone man is facing charges that include vehicular homicide and third-offense O-W-I following the crash on Interstate 35. Police say 45-year-old William Phipps was driving a pickup that slammed into the back of a car in the southbound lanes of I-35 near Ankeny at 6:20 a.m.

A passenger in the car, 30-year-old Alexander Koc,h of Ankeny, died at the scene while the driver of the car was injured. Police say Phipps ran from the scene but was captured by officers about a half mile away. Because of his record, Phipps was barred from driving.

(Radio Iowa)

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

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — The Cedar Falls Fraternal Order of Eagles is offering $1,000 for information leading to the arrest of the person responsible for vandalizing the Blackhawk County Freedom Rock Memorial. The 175-member, non-profit group says Friday that it would donate the money for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the case. The rock, located at Veterans Park in Cedar Falls, was spray painted during Memorial Day weekend.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Marriott hotel in Bettendorf will get another chance to defend itself against a lawsuit filed by a hotel guest who was awarded $1.2 million by a jury after she slipped on an icy sidewalk in January 2010 and broke her ankle. The lawsuit was filed by Brenda Alcala, a software consultant from Texas who was on a business trip to Bettendorf.

JACKSON, Neb. (AP) — A 10-year-old boy is the third to die after a single-vehicle crash in Nebraska. Jose Lara, of Council Bluffs, died Thursday afternoon. The driver, Christopher Cox, says he swerved to avoid hitting a deer when the car ended up in a creek near Jackson, Nebraska. He’s charged with two counts of motor vehicle homicide and driving without a license. Two passengers, Connie Fauzae and Espionza Lara, died at the scene.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A former Iowa State Patrol sergeant has been charged with repeatedly stealing prescription pills that were being stored as evidence. Michael Haugen is charged with falsifying a public document and third-degree theft. Investigators say he stole 150 pills from a patrol evidence room, affecting up to six criminal cases.

A man from northwest Iowa died at a hospital in Des Moines Friday, following an accident that same day, in Guthrie County. The Iowa State Patrol reports 69-year old Robert Core, of Lake City, died at after being flown by LifeNet helicopter to Methodist Hospital in Des Moines. The man, who was not wearing a seat belt, had been alert and conscious, when rescuers arrived on the scene.

The accident happened at around 3:17-p.m., as Core was traveling north on Frontier Road, which was closed for resurfacing. His 2003 Buick LeSabre struck a pile of gravel on the road located in the northbound lane, just south of Highway 44, causing the car to go out of control and into the southbound ditch, where it came to rest facing northwest.

(Updated 12:45-a.m.)

JACKSON, Neb. (AP) — A 10-year-old boy from Iowa is the third to die after a single-vehicle crash in Nebraska. The Dakota County Sheriff’s Office says Jose Lara, of Council Bluffs, died from his injuries Thursday evening at a hospital.

Deputies were called Thursday morning to a crash on U.S. Highway 20 near Jackson, Nebraska. The vehicle went over an embankment and into a creek. The driver, 45-year-old Christopher Cox, told police that he swerved to avoid hitting a deer. He has been charged with two counts of motor vehicle homicide and one count of driving without a license. Authorities say additional charges against Cox may be filed.

Two passengers, 57-year-old Connie Fauzae and 9-year-old Esperanza Lara, were pronounced dead at the scene.

Governor Terry Branstad says he is “open” to making changes in the state’s income taxes next year. “But I haven’t formalized any plans yet,” Branstad says. “I want to visit with legislators to see what is ‘the art of the possible.'” Branstad says he MIGHT support ending a controversial tax break that makes Iowa’s income tax RATES look higher than they actually are. Two decades ago, Branstad UNSUCCESSFULLY proposed getting rid of that tax credit. It gives Iowans the ability to subtract what they paid in FEDERAL income taxes from their state tax bill.

“That was back when Iowans for Tax Relief really led the charge to keep that,” Branstad says. “The circumstances may have changed somewhat.” The lobbying group’s influence in the statehouse has faded in the past several years and the founder of Iowans for Tax Relief died last fall. Another group called the Iowa Taxpayers Association released a study last month, making proposals to simplify the state’s income taxes — and getting rid of what’s called “federal deductability” tax break was at the top of the list. Branstad says Iowa is one of the “few states” that offer that deduction and it’s “an impediment” when trying to lure business to relocate or expand in Iowa.

“They look at what is the high marginal rate and they don’t take into consideration the federal deductability, so our effective rate is much lower than that marginal rate, so that hurts the perception of Iowa,” Branstad says, “Now, a lot of Iowans understand that because they are familiar with the Iowa tax, but a lot of companies from the outside, just looking at it, don’t realize that.” While Branstad says this is a problem, he’s not yet ready to call for eliminating this tax break until he’s sure a majority of legislators would vote to take that step.

“I’m not one to tilt at windmills,” Branstad says. “I want to do things that can be accomplished and sometimes it takes more than one year to accomplish significant things.”Branstad made his comments during taping of the “Iowa Press” program which will air tonight (Friday) on Iowa Public Television.

(Radio Iowa)