DES MOINES – Officials with the Iowa Department of Corrections, Friday, said the Anamosa State Penitentiary and the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women received the results of positive COVID-19 tests Thursday afternoon. Due to the new positive cases, those facilities are entering a restricted movement status to mitigate further viral spread. While on restricted movement, video visitations have been suspended at this time at both facilities.

The facilities are currently organizing mass-testing for inmates and staff in the coming days to identify any additional inmates that should be placed in medical isolation or quarantine units as part of the facilities’ virus mitigation strategies. As additional testing is conducted and additional inmates are identified as positive for COVID-19, updates will be posted at https://doc.iowa.gov/COVID19. Whenever an inmate tests positive for COVID-19, staff notify the inmate’s emergency contact immediately.

The department says it has been preparing for and dealing with the eventuality of COVID-19 in the prison system for months. Since the start of the pandemic, the department has had over 1,200 inmates and over 200 staff recover from the virus and a total of 4 inmates that passed away due to complications related to the virus.

An outline of the changes to DOC protocols can be found at doc.iowa.gov/department-corrections-steps, and more information related to COVID-19 in the DOC can be found at doc.iowa.gov/COVID19. For members of the public with questions about COVID-19 in the prison system, a hotline is available during business hours Monday-Friday by calling (515) 373-5457. For more on the free o-mails, phone calls and video visitation that the department has provided for those incarcerated to communicate with their loved-ones, please visit https://doc.iowa.gov/families-during-covid19.

DAVENPORT, Iowa- United States Attorney Marc Krickbaum announced Friday, that 20-year-old Brandon Tumause Owen, of Cedar Rapids, was indicted by a federal grand jury for one count of Unlawful Drug User in Possession of a Firearm, after he brandished an AR-15 rifle during a June protest in Iowa City.

According to public records, Owen was stopped on June 7, 2020, by Iowa City Police for a traffic offense. An impaired driving investigation was performed and indicated Owen was under the influence of marijuana. An AR-15 rifle was located inside Owen’s vehicle. Under federal law, it is illegal for an unlawful drug user to possess firearms.

According to Attorney Krickbaum, “Our Constitution protects everyone’s right to peacefully protest against injustice. It does not protect anyone’s  right to illegally carry and publically brandish an AR-15. We will prosecute those – including protestors – who commit federal gun crimes.”

After the indictment of Owen, FBI Omaha’s Special Agent in Charge Eugene Kowel said, “The FBI holds sacred the rights of individuals to peacefully exercise their First Amendment freedoms. When someone threatens the safety of peaceful protestors, we will step in to protect them.”

The case is part of Project Guardian (PG) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), programs bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce gun crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. This matter is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Iowa City Police Department, and the Iowa Department of Public Safety. The case is being prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.