(Radio Iowa) – Iowa and ten other Midwestern states are conducting a speed awareness campaign today (Wednesday). The Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau chief, Brett Tjepkes says Iowa has seen a 25 percent increase in speeding related deaths on the roadways. He says speeding related crashes killed 84 people in Iowa in 2021. There’s some speculation the lack of traffic and open roads during the pandemic led to increased highway speeds, and it has continued with traffic back up.

Tjepkes says egregious speeds or more than 100 miles an hour have increased. The Iowa State Patrol, many sheriff’s departments and police departments are taking part in the speed awareness day. Tjepkes says they are just asking drivers to please slow down. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, and Arkansas are also focusing on speed today (Wednesday).

(Radio Iowa) –  The Iowa Supreme Court has issued an order saying it will hear Governor Kim Reynolds’ appeal of a district court injunction that blocked new abortion restrictions. Reynolds signed the bill into law that that bans most abortions in Iowa after cardiac activity can be detected on July 14th. A Polk County District Court judge issued a temporary injunction blocking its enforcement four days later. Attorney General Brenna Bird says she’s glad the Supreme Court has agreed to hear the appeal and she looks forward to defending the right to life in court.

(Radio Iowa) – Republican Senator Chuck Grassley says he publicly released a document that could have information about alleged bribes to Joe and Hunter Biden because the F-B-I censored part of the memo when it was shown to a House committee. “They were trying to cover up that there were possible phone calls between Vice President Biden and some Ukrainian oligarch that he had to give the Bidens some money,” Grassley says. “Now, it’s up to the FBI to determine if there were any crimes committed.”

President Biden has denied the allegations. F-B-I officials say Grassley’s public disclosure of the document last Thursday has put a confidential source at serious risk. Grassley says it appears to him that the Justice Department isn’t investigating allegations against President Biden as aggressively as the allegations against former President Donald Trump.

“It’s very unusual in the 240 year history of our country…to have one party put the possible candidate of the other party on the dock and probably in prison,” Grassley says. Grassley says he began pushing the F-B-I about the allegations against the Bidens in 2019 and he was able to release the document last week because of government whistleblowers.

A White House spokesman says the claims in the document Grassley released have been debunked for years.

(Afton, Iowa) – No injuries were reported following a semi tractor-trailer rollover accident in Union County, this (Tuesday) morning. The Union County Sheriff’s Office said the crash happened at around 8:55-a.m. on Ridge Drive (southeast of Afton). Authorities report a 2018 Peterbilt semi driven by 54-year-old Marcos Aurelio Gutierrez, of Cushing, OK, was traveling south on Ridge Road, when he missed the turn going onto eastbound 230th Street.

The trailer rolled over into the north ditch, taking the tractor/cab with it. Authorities noted the trailer was an over-size load. The semi – registered to The Railroad Yard, Inc., out of Stillwater, OK, sustained $2,000 damage. There were no citations issued.