(Washington, D-C) – An Iowa man and his son charged in connection to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol are expected to plead guilty. KCCI reports Daryl Johnson of Saint Ansgar and his son, Daniel Johnson, of Minnesota, were seen on video entering the Capitol during the attack — and later bragged about it on social media. The two face numerous charges, including violent entry and disorderly conduct.

Court documents filed last week show a plea hearing has been scheduled for the afternoon of Jan. 4. Court documents also show that in January, investigators said someone tipped them off to a Snapchat video taken by Daniel Johnson showing him inside the Capitol during the attack. Then, on Jan. 18, another tip, regarding a Facebook post made by Daniel Johnson, saying “I was one of the first ones inside the capitol building.” A March 1 tip implicated both of the Johnsons and investigators said they were able to identify the two from video taken inside the Capitol.

The records say Daryl Johnson was wearing the same puffy navy blue jacket on Jan. 6 that he had in public Facebook photos and made Facebook posts about being at the Capitol. After obtaining private messages, investigators accuse Daniel Johnson of telling someone “We stormed capitol hill” and “Lol Dad and I were one of the first ones inside.” They say he sent those messages on the Jan. 6, soon after the attack.

So far, six Iowans face charges connected to the riot.

The Red Oak Police Department reports the arrest at around 9-p.m. Tuesday, of a woman following a traffic stop. Authorities say 55-year-old Barbara Darlene Wilson, of Red Oak, was arrested for Driving While Suspended. Her bond at the Montgomery County Jail, was set at slightly more than $491.

(Radio Iowa) – Smoking has been banned in public places in Iowa since 2008, but there’s been an exception that has allowed smoking in the gaming areas of Iowa casinos. Senator Janet Petersen, a Democrat from Des Moines, notes the state’s tribal casinos and some state-licensed casinos temporarily moved to ban smoking to prevent the spread of Covid-19.  “I do think that may be one silver lining of this horrible pandemic that we’ve been living through is we’ve seen casinos across the state make the decision to eliminate smoking on their premises,” Petersen says, “and it is time for the legislature to just put that policy in place.”

In 2008, Petersen was a member of the Iowa House and chairwoman of the commerce committee that led the effort to pass the Iowa Smokefree Act. At the time, Iowa’s casino industry argued it would lose customers to casinos in the Illinois Quad Cities where smoking was allowed, but smoking is now banned in casinos in Illnois and South Dakota — and gambling regulators overseeing construction of new casinos in Nebraska have just proposed a smoking ban.

“I really see the competition argument is weakening because of the states surrounding us,” Petersen says, “as well as the tribal casinos eliminating smoking.” There’s been a no-smoking movement in casinos run by Native American tribes nationwide. Wes Ehrecke is president and C-E-O of the Iowa Gaming Association, which represents the 19 state-licensed casinos.

“Casinos probably have some of the best filtration and ventilation systems around. We have to accommodate both smokers and non-smokers in a very acceptable and quality indoor environment and we do that,” Ehrecke says. “…We’re bringing in fresh air several times every hour and that’s really helped during this Covid.” Ehrecke says it’s not a workplace safety issue — and he says adults should be allowed to make adult decisions in adult venues.

“It’s still legal in this country to (smoke)…but we want to be proactive with it and we are,” Ehrecke says. “…The employees don’t seem to have complaints that I know of because we are doing such a proactive effort with our ventilation and filtration.” Ehrecke made his comments during a recent appearance on “Iowa Press” on Iowa P-B-S.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says if you are confused by all the talk about COVID — there’s one thing to do. “Listen to their own doctor — particularly on vaccinations — be as cautious as you can. Don’t listen to the politicians,” Grassley says. The Republican from New Hartford says Democrats have politicized the issue, and cites President Joe Biden’s recent statement that there is no federal solution to the pandemic.

“If Trump had said that same thing, he would be lambasted. And that’s what Democrats were saying, that we’ve got to have a federal solution to it. Now their president comes along and says it’s up to the individual states,” he says. Grassley says he agrees that the solution should be left to the states. “Because we have such a geographically vast country. New York is so different from Des Moines Iowa that you shouldn’t pour this country into one mold and expect everything to be done in Washington D-C is going to fit all parts of the country the same way,” according to Grassley.

He says Biden’s statement wasn’t criticized even though it was the opposite of what his party has been pushing. “It’s completely different from the message he gave during his campaign that it’s all Trump’s fault and the federal government is going to solve all these problems,” Grassley says. Grassley says Iowa — and fellow Republican Governor Kim Reynolds — has done a good job of handling the pandemic.