(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, a Democrat, says the U.S. Supreme Court made a big mistake in overturning Roe v Wade. Republican Brenna Bird says if she’s elected attorney general, she’ll be on the front lines of defending new restrictions on abortion. “I’m 100% pro-life and it would be my job as attorney general to defend the law that the legislature would pass,” Bird says.

Bird says Miller chose not to have his office defend the state when Planned Parenthood sued to block the six week abortion ban Republican lawmakers adopted in 2018. “But in 2021, he defended the waiting period for abortion law until he changed his mind partway through and decided not to defend it anymore,” Bird says. “When I’m attorney general I will do my job and defend the law.” Miller says he did the ethical thing by having private attorneys rather than the attorney general’s office defend abortion restrictions the Republican legislature and governor had adopted.

Miller and Bird. (Iowa PBS photo)

“I’ve represented the state in many ways in cases where I generally disagreed with the policy,” Miller says, “but twice I got to the situation where I thought that given the situation that I couldn’t zealously represent the state — two times out of 40 years — and so I stepped aside.” Miller says he’s opposed to “extreme” abortion policies. “A lot of women feel incredible threats in terms of their liberty and in terms of the freedom to take care of their own medical conditions,” Miller says, “and I support them in that.”

Miller and Bird made their comments during taping of “Iowa Press” which airs tonight (Friday) on Iowa P-B-S.

CRESTON, Iowa – Sept. 9, 2022 – A project to set beams for the new Ashworth Road bridge over Interstate 80 in West Des Moines requires closures of west- and eastbound I-80 between Jordan Creek Parkway (exit 121) and Grand Prairie Parkway (exit 118) and a full closure of Ashworth Road overnights. These closures will now begin on Wednesday night, Sept. 14, weather permitting, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation’s Creston construction office.

Wednesday, Sept. 14 at 10 p.m. until Thursday, Sept. 15 at 5 a.m.

• Full closure of westbound I-80 and closure of the left lane of eastbound I-80 to allow crews to set four beams.

Thursday, Sept. 15 at 10 p.m. until Friday, Sept. 16 at 5 a.m.

• Full closure of eastbound I-80 and closure of the left lane of westbound I-80 to allow crews to set four beams.

During these closures, traffic will follow a marked detour route using Grand Prairie Parkway, University Avenue, and Jordan Creek Parkway. The Iowa DOT reminds motorists to drive with caution, obey the posted speed limit and other signs in the work area, and be aware that traffic fines for moving violations are at least double in work zones. As in all work zones, drivers should stay alert, allow ample space between vehicles, and wear seat belts.

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Public Safety, today (Friday) said that following an investigation, on September 7, 2022, 42-year-old Chad Ryan Koch, of Indianola, Iowa, was arrested and charged with two (2) counts of Theft 1st Degree and two (2) counts of Fraudulent Practices in Polk County.  All four charges are Class C Felonies.

Authorities say this continues to be an active criminal case, and agents with the Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) wish to speak with anyone who has had financial dealings with Koch in an attempt to identify additional victims. Koch was previously a certified police officer who worked in multiple jurisdictions around Central Iowa.

Anyone with information is asked to please contact DCI Special Agent Chris Forsyth at (319) 883-6108 or forsyth@dps.state.ia.us .

A criminal charge is only an accusation, and criminal defendants are innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

(Cass County, Iowa) – In an update to our earlier reports, Cass County Engineer Trent Wolken told KJAN News a bridge that partially collapsed Thursday afternoon northeast of Massena, was due to the operator of a crane taking a short cut to the job site, and crossing the bridge with an overweight load. The driver – whose name has not yet been released – was trapped in the crane cab , but managed to get out. He suffered lacerations to his face and neck. Wolken said the three of the five concrete double-T panels on the Pella Road bridge collapsed, causing the crane – owned by Mammoet Crane Company – to topple over into the creek. The accident happened around one-quarter of a mile east of 765th on Pella Road, at around 3-p.m.

Wolken said the bridge had just been replaced about five-years ago. Replacement panels have been ordered, but with delays in supply and shipping, it will likely be several weeks before the road is re-opened at the scene. Wolken said also, the crane was enroute to one of the South Rolling Hills wind turbine “re-power” project sites, to help with the removal and replacement of certain wind turbine blades. It was NOT permitted to use that route. Wolken said the bridge, like most in the County, had a legal load rate of 80,000-lbs, but the crane was about 120-thousand pounds, and was not being transported on a trailer for load displacement, as it should have been if it were permitted.

Cumberland-Massena Fire and Rescue, Cass EMS, and Sheriff’s Deputies were initially dispatched to the scene, but the incident was handled by a Massena unit, and the others, with the exception of the Sheriff’s Department, were told to disregard. No information has been released (as of this report), with regard to any charges the driver and/or crane company may face, if any.

(Radio Iowa) – The Appanoose County Sheriff’s Office says one man was involved in two accidents minutes apart. According to officials, a 911 call was received Thursday at 3:01 PM concerning a hit-and-run accident on Highway 5. The caller said a vehicle continued traveling southbound on the highway after the wreck. At 3:05 PM, the Appanoose County Law Center received a second call of a single-vehicle rollover accident. 58-year-old Robert Logston, of Cincinnati, was in critical condition at the scene and life-flighted to Des Moines.

Law enforcement later determined Logston was the driver who departed the scene of the first accident minutes before the rollover crash. Authorities have not yet filed any charges or citations. Both accidents are still under investigation.

(Radio Iowa) – The University of Northern Iowa is the state school that has struggled the most with maintaining enrollment and saw another drop in the just released fall numbers. University spokesman, Peter Morris, says they have seen some positives in their efforts despite the fall drop. “You know, really what we’re focused on is the fact that, you know, we really had an uptick in transfer students, you know, we’re up 22 percent in our transfer students, and some of that is due to our partnerships with the Iowa community colleges,” Morris says. He says getting transfers students is one way to handle factors out of their control –like historically low unemployment rates.

He says the historical data shows a correlation between higher unemployment and enrollment at all levels of colleges. A majority of U-N-Is students are Iowans and Morris says is another issue facing the college — as more high school kids are going straight into a job. “So that combined with the economy, we’re more of those folks are choosing go directly into the workforce and positive pursuing a higher ed degree, you know, those are contributing factors,” he says. The school recently rebranded and is trying to create a larger presence throughout the state. Morris believes that is working.

“I think one of the things that I’ve consistently heard is, hey, you know, we’re, we’re seeing your presence, we’re seeing your brand in places that maybe it’s been absent before. So I think we’re seeing some return on that investment,” Morris says. Fall enrollment on the Cedar Falls campus dropped around 200 students to eight-thousand-949. It was the fifth straight drop in enrollment at U-N-I. Iowa State University saw a drop as well, while the University of Iowa saw a slight increase for the fall.