The Gazette Daily News Podcast

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Friday, June 12.

It should be a pleasant, sunny day, Friday, weather wise. According to the National Weather Service, it will be sunny with a high near 84 degrees in the Cedar Rapids area. The low will drop down to 55 Friday night. There should be a 5-10 mph wind throughout the day.

In a move that was both unusually swift and unusually bipartisan, legislators from both the Iowa House and Senate unanimously passed a police reform bill Thursday night. The bill, which now heads to Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds for her signature, contains many reforms requested by Black Lives Matter protesters. The bill was negotiated by members of both parties, but spearheaded by the small contingent of black legislators serving now in Des Moines.

The reforms include that officers cannot use choke holds, with the exception being that the person being pursued cannot be captured any other way and has already have threatened or used deadly force; an officer cannot be hired if he or she has been fired or quit another department while being investigated for serious misconduct, or convicted of a felony; and all departments will be required to undergo training on de-escalation and cultural and racial bias.

The legislation comes at the end of several weeks of protests after the May 25 death of George Floyd while under arrest by Minneapolis police. One contingent of protesters in Iowa City, who call themselves the Iowa Freedom Riders, held another protest in Coralville to stress that many of their demands still have not been met. Besides disrupting some traffic and standing off with Iowa State Patrol members for about an hour Thursday night, the protest remained peaceful.

Gov. Reynolds cancelled her coronavirus press conference Thursday. After weeks of positive trends with coronavirus numbers, many businesses, including restaurants and bars, will resume normal business without capacity restrictions Friday. They still are encouraged to promote social distancing and regular hand washing practices.

Unlike some states, Iowa’s hospitalization rate for COVID-19 continues to drop by the day, a key metric that has led to the relaxation of restrictions throughout the state. Still, positive tests of the virus and deaths have continued to mount, with the state reaching 648 deaths from the disease on Thursday.

This briefing is sponsored in part by Corridor Careers. Are you looking for a job? https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com) is a resource to local job seekers where they can get job tips, sign up for local job alerts, build a resume and more. Check it out at https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com).

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Thursday, June 11.

After a rainy Tuesday and a strangely cool Wednesday, we’re back to June for Thursday’s weather. According to the National Weather Service forecast it should be sunny with a high near 80 degrees in the Cedar Rapids area. It will still be a bit windy again Thursday, with a 10-15 mph wind gusting as high as 25 mph.

Iowa governor Kim Reynolds announced Wednesday that businesses in the state will be able to operate at full capacity beginning on Friday. Restaurants, bars, theaters and a variety of other businesses no longer will be subject to 50 percent capacity limitations. However, they still will be expected to continue observing six-foot separation distances, hand washing and other hygiene measures that have been considered effective in preventing the potentially deadly virus from rapidly spreading among communities. Meanwhile swimming pools, adult day care and senior centers will be able to reopen under social distancing and other public health guidelines tailored to those locations.

Iowa’s death total from COVID-19 rose to 638 by the end of Wednesday, but hospitalizations for the disease have fallen steadily over the past few weeks.

Despite the positive trends with the virus for now, there is no telling what the future will hold. It was for this reason that the Iowa State Fair Board met on Wednesday and canceled the 2020 edition of the Iowa State Fair. It will be the first time the fair has skipped a year since WW2. More than 1 million people typically visit the Iowa State Fair in its 11-day run, which was scheduled for Aug. 13-23.

The University of Northern Iowa and Iowa State University announced some of their preparations for dealing with the virus. In addition to an array of protection measures, both schools are cramming their schedule into a span between Labor Day and Thanksgiving, with the aim of reducing travel windows created by multiple breaks as well as creating a buffer for what typically is flu season.

The Iowa legislature continued its busy COVID-19 abbreviated session Wednesday. Democrats criticized their Republican counterparts, who currently control essentially everything in state government, in giving too much control of the proposed $7.85 billion budget to the Republican governor without proper oversight. The Republican in the committee disagreed, and that was that. The bill passed out of the committee for vote of the full house.

Meanwhile, Republicans in the Iowa Senate passed a bill that would no longer allow the Secretary of State to mail ballots to registered voters without being asked for them. The bill came after Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican, mailed ballots to voters for the June 2 primary in an effort to promote voting and keep people safe during the COVID-19 epidemic.

The result was record voting numbers for a primary, with 420,000 of the 530,000 votes cast coming via absentee vote.

This briefing is sponsored in part by Corridor Careers. Are you looking for a job? https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com) is a resource to local job seekers where they can get job tips, sign up for local job alerts, build a resume and more. Check it out at https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com).

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Wednesday, June 10.

After a day of sustained rain Tuesday, there should be a little bit more rain on Wednesday, but nothing comparable in amount. According to the National Weather Service, there could be occasional showers in the Cedar Rapids area, mainly between 1:00 and 5:00 p.m. It will be fairly cold for mid June, with a high of 64 degrees, and winds could gust as high as 25 mph.

An 8 p.m. curfew put in place in the city of Coralville after a clash between a gathering of people and Coralville police a week ago has now been removed. This could be both a sign of the reduced tensions between protesters demanding racial justice and police, as well as a sign that those protesters had some effect, as removing the curfew was one of their demands.

Further evidence of the influence of Black Lives Matter protests in the past week was shown by the city councils in both Cedar Rapids and Iowa City meeting on Tuesday to discuss demands presented to them by protesters. While no major changes have been made so far, both councils indicated an openness to both remove military type equipment from their police forces and to institute additional layers of oversight, such as empowered police review boards.

While daily death totals from COVID-19 had been going down in Iowa, Iowa’s death total Tuesday jumped back up to 15, bringing the total of those dying from the disease since early March in the state to 629. In general, however, hospitalizations in the state continue to decrease every day.

Republicans in the Iowa Legislature began work Tuesday on a $7.85 billion state budget proposal for next fiscal year that they called a “status quo” spending plan for much of state government. As Republicans control the House, Senate, and Governor’s seat in Des Moines, it is mostly them negotiating with themselves at the moment. While the status quo is usually lower than many, especially those in education would like, considering the effect that COVID-19 has had on revenue collection, this year holding steady will likely be looked at as a win for many agencies, including the universities, who are already worried other economic factors such as reduced enrollment could necessitate cuts.

This briefing is sponsored in part by Corridor Careers. Are you looking for a job? https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com) is a resource to local job seekers where they can get job tips, sign up for local job alerts, build a resume and more. Check it out at https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com).

This is Stephen Colbert from the Gazette Digital News Desk and I’m here with your update for Tuesday, June 9, 2020.

Today has a chance of rain, and possibly thunderstorms with a high of 78! The chance of rain and thunderstorms will continue through tomorrow, but we can expect a stretch of bright and sunny days for the rest of the week.

The number of coronavirus cases in Iowa rose over the weekend to 21,918 total cases and the deaths attributed to coronavirus rose by 5 yesterday to 607 total.

https://www.thegazette.com/subject/news/health/cottage-grove-nusing-home-coronavirus-outbreak-recovery-20200608 (Cottage Grove Place recovers following coronavirus outbreak). The senior living center in southeast Cedar Rapids, has not seen any new cases of the novel coronavirus for 28 days. The facility, which reported the outbreak in mid-April, had six positive cases among residents and staff. Four people recovered, and two residents died after testing positive. Cottage Grove is the second long-term care facility in Linn County has recovered from an outbreak of the coronavirus.

https://www.thegazette.com/subject/news/education/noreen-bush-cedar-rapids-superintendent-back-to-school-fall-coronavirus-20200608 (Wondering what will school look like this fall)? Cedar Rapids district is working on 3 plans. Superintendent Noreen Bush discusses scenarios for teaching kids amid coronavirus pandemic. If school facilities aren’t able to reopen next school year because of the coronavirus pandemic, schools will be expected to provide virtual education similar to the “required” online learning some districts provided this spring. The Cedar Rapids district provided “voluntary” learning, which could not be mandated or counted for credit. Even if schools can open, Bush said she is sorting out what in-person teaching could look like and how the district would respond if someone on staff or a student were diagnosed with COVID-19. The district also has hybrid and full-return models. For full details and Bush’s entire interview, visit TheGazette.com.

https://www.thegazette.com/subject/news/education/iowa-university-furloughs-layoffs-coronavirus-20200608 (University of Iowa warns of possible layoffs, furloughs, pay cuts.) The campus projects losing $70 million from the pandemic through August — not including UI Health Care, which through the end of this month expects to take a $120 million COVID-19 hit, even with $30 million in federal stimulus aid.

As the University of Iowa continues to assess its financial blow from the coronavirus, UI President Bruce Harreld warned Monday some units could be harder hit than others and that layoffs, furloughs and pay cuts could be coming.

Iowa’s other two public universities also have warned of pay cuts and staffing changes as all three in mid-March canceled in-person classes; moved instruction online; recalled study abroad students; directed employees to work from home; closed residence halls and most dining facilities; and gave refunds to many students.

You can find all this and the rest of our coronavirus coverage at our dedicated coronavirus page, https://www.thegazette.com/section/storyline?theme=CORONAVIRUS (TheGazette.com/coronavirus).

https://www.thegazette.com/subject/news/health/iowa-medical-marijuana-dispensary-application-reissue-20200608 (The State of Iowa is going to reissue application for new medical marijuana dispensaries). Cedar Rapids’s sole medical marijuana manufacturer permanently has closed its doors, leaving the state with one medical cannabidiol manufacturer.

Iowa Relief relinquished its license following weeks after having ceased operations at its plant. The company produced medical marijuana capsules, topical ointments and tinctures for Iowa’s medical cannabidiol program for less than a year.

State officials still are determining when applications for a new medical marijuana manufacturer will open. They plan to release details in the near future....

This is Stephen Colbert from the Gazette Digital News Desk and I’m here with your update for Monday, June 8, 2020.

Today is going to be sunny with a high near 92! Things will cool off a bit tonight to a nice 69 degrees.

There’s a chance of rain the next few days, but mostly clear skies and high 70s through the weekend.

The number of coronavirus cases in Iowa rose over the weekend to 21,611 total cases and the deaths attributed to coronavirus has risen to 602.

While Iowa has crossed 600 deaths, the state is still improving.There are currently 269 hospitalized with 86 ICU patients and 54 patients on ventilators, all numbers that have continuously been decreasing. The number of patients on ventilators the overall hospitalizations are the lowest since April.

UNI bringing back athletes starting Monday. Northern Iowa’s athletics department has a plan to begin bringing its student-athletes back to campus for voluntary workouts. Social distancing will be in place for voluntary workouts, along with personal protective equipment requirements and limits on group sizes. Men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball, women’s soccer and cross country will be allowed to return to campus June 15. All other sports will be permitted to return June 29.

You can find all this and the rest of our coronavirus coverage at our dedicated coronavirus page, TheGazette.com/coronavirus.

Thousands of protesters gathered in Iowa City and Cedar Rapids this weekend to protest police brutality and racial equality. In Iowa City, protesters managed to shut down I-80

A leader of the Iowa City group that calls itself the Iowa Freedom Riders and has been organizing protests across the community over the last week was arrested Sunday evening. 20 year old Mazin Mohamedali faces three charges, including unlawful assembly, disorderly conduct and a probation violation.

Mohamedali has called himself a leader of the group that has organized the numerous protests in Iowa City over the last week that start on the University of Iowa’s Pentacrest and migrate to Interstate 80.

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That’s it for today’s update. Be sure to subscribe to The Gazette Daily news podcast, or just tell your Amazon Alexa to “enable The Gazette Daily News skill" so you can get your daily briefing by simply saying “Alexa, what’s the news?"

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for the weekend of June 6th and June 7th.

Your weather forecast is boring in the just way you would want June weather to be boring. According to the National Weather Service, Saturday will feature a high of 84 degrees in the Cedar Rapids area with mostly sunny skies. Saturday night it will turn mostly cloudy, with a low of around 62 degrees. On Sunday it will be mostly sunny, with a high near 86 degrees. It will become slightly windy Sunday during the day, with a southeast wind of 15 mph gusting as high as 25 mph. But nothing else exciting should happen weather wise. Sunday night it will be mostly clear with a low of around 69 degrees.

Iowa City protesters returned to Interstate 80 for the third time in three nights to protest racial injustice and improper policing Friday night, temporarily halting traffic all three nights. The first night ended up in them being dispersed by tear gas and flash bang grenades. On the second, a small band was allowed to protest on the overpass above the Interstate. On Friday night, the Iowa State Patrol shut down the highway to allow protesters sit and make demands, which included ending the curfew in Coralville, removing police officers from the local school district buildings, and redirecting some funding from police departments to social services.

They then left peaceably and returned to the university Pentacrest.

Iowa City’s protest was one of several this week sparked by the death of George Floyd, a black man, while in the custody of Minneapolis police on May 25. There are more protests scheduled in Eastern Iowa on Saturday.

A 27-year-old man took a plea deal admitting that he had killed two teenagers and wounded two others outside of a smoke shop in southwest Cedar Rapids in May of 2019. Andre Richardson was offered the plea deal after a gun was found between the two teenagers in the back, which could have complicated a jury trial, allowing Richardson to claim self defense. Instead he will face a series of charges, including multiple counts of second-degree murder and willful injury. Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden said Friday that the sentences effectively add up to a life sentence, while many family members at the trial expressed dismay, saying Richardson was not punished severely enough and that they had been misled by Vander Sanden.

The total number of Iowans hospitalized for COVID-19 fell to 299 Friday, dropping the number below 300 for the first time since April 25 and marking the ninth consecutive day of decreasing hospitalizations. The number of patients in intensive care units and on ventilators also fell, marking a continued positive trend for the disease in the state.

The death total did near 600 on Friday, however, with 597 reported deaths so far from the disease.

This briefing is sponsored in part by Corridor Careers. Are you looking for a job? https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com) is a resource to local job seekers where they can get job tips, sign up for local job alerts, build a resume and more. Check it out at https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com).

Have a good weekend everyone.

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Friday, June 5th.

More thunderstorms should push through the area Friday morning. According to the National Weather Service forecast for the Cedar Rapids area, the sporadic appearance of storms from Thursday night should continue Friday morning, mostly before 10:00 a.m. After that it should be a mostly cloudy day, heading toward sunny, with a high near 88 degrees.

As George Floyd’s life was memorialized in Minneapolis Thursday afternoon, the protest movement that his death galvanized continued Thursday night, including in several cities in Iowa. Four Minneapolis police officers have been charged in connection with Floyd’s death, after video revealed an officer, Derek Chauvin, had placed his knee on Floyd’s neck for several minutes during an arrest. Flod’s death as a black man at the hands of police has sparked weeks of protests and discussion on the legacy of racism in America.

In Iowa City, almost 1,000 people marched to protest police brutality and racial injustice again Thursday. Whereas the previous night had found protesters heading to protest at the Interstate 80 highway dispersed by tear gas and flashbang grenades, Thursday night saw a smaller amount of protesters escorted by police to the highway overpass, temporarily closing it again, but with no tear gas this time. Iowa City Mayor Bruce Teague and other city officials had addressed the protesters both before and during the protest Thursday, reaching out to diffuse tensions between them and law enforcement.

Iowa health officials have developed guidelines that will allow family members to resume in-person visits with their relatives who live in long-term care facilities, Gov. Kim Reynolds said Thursday.

There is no set date for when family visits, halted in mid-March as the COVID-19 coronavirus spread, can resume. Outbreaks at care facilities, hosting some of Iowa’s most vulnerable to the disease, have been linked to 290 of Iowa’s nearly 600 deaths from coronavirus. In general, the three phase plan links a decrease in coronavirus positive tests in the areas surrounding the care centers to increased access at the center’s discretion, while also recommending that when visitors are allowed, they wear masks and other protective gear for the foreseeable future.

Iowa’s Board of Regents governing the state’s public universities met Thursday and agreed to freeze tuition, preventing tuition increases this fall while providing “as full a range of on-campus experiences as possible.” The regents, despite the protestations of students arguing the need for financial consistency in a time of economic uncertainty, reserved the right to potentially raise tuition again next Spring.

This briefing is sponsored in part by Corridor Careers. Are you looking for a job? https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com) is a resource to local job seekers where they can get job tips, sign up for local job alerts, build a resume and more. Check it out at https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com).

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Thursday, June 4th.

Your Thursday will feature some more hot and humid weather, with a chance of thunderstorms Thursday night. According to the National Weather Service, it should be mostly sunny for much of the day in the Cedar Rapids area, with a high of 88 degrees. Then, after 7 p.m., there will be a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. This chance for rain will continue into the early morning hours on Friday.

Iowa legislators returned to session Wednesday, and they remained as divided as ever, even on how seriously to take infection of the coronavirus. In a jarring juxtaposition of values, many Democrats debated wearing masks or face shields, while most Republicans spoke sans protection, beyond hand sanitizer and some social distancing. A Republican, Jeff Shipley, mocked the lawmakers taking precautions while talking with supporters about his stance against mandatory coronavirus vaccination, saying that “this virus isn’t even killing anybody.” Meanwhile, on the same day, legislation supported by Iowa’s business industry that would place a cap on the extent businesses could be sued as a result of an employee contracting COVID-19 passed out of a House committee.

6 more people were reported as dying from coronavirus on Wednesday, bringing the state’s total to 566 deaths since the discovery of the disease in the state in early March.

Debate in this accelerated legislative session will continue on Thursday.

Almost 1,000 protestors gathered in Iowa City Wednesday night to protest for law enforcement reform and racial justice similar to many protesting across the nation after the death of George Floyd, a black man, during an arrest by Minneapolis police officers on May 25th. The protests were mostly peaceful Wednesday night, but as hundreds of protesters remained into the early morning hours Thursday, attempts by protesters to block Interstate 80 were dispersed by law enforcement using tear gas and flash bang grenades. The interstate highway was temporarily closed by the Iowa Department of Transportation as protesters approached.

Earlier on Wednesday, the three remaining officers not yet charged in Floyd’s death were arrested and charged with being accessories to his murder. Officer Derek Chauvin, who was shown on video placing his knee on Floyd’s neck for several minutes during the arrest as Floyd told officers he could not breathe, has now been charged with second-degree murder. All four officers had been fired already prior to being charged.

This briefing is sponsored in part by Corridor Careers. Are you looking for a job? https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com) is a resource to local job seekers where they can get job tips, sign up for local job alerts, build a resume and more. Check it out at https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com).

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Wednesday, June 3rd.

Your Wednesday weather forecast looks to be sunny and a bit cooler than Tuesday, as early morning rain could roll through the area. According to the National Weather Service, there should be a high of 87 degrees in the Cedar Rapids area Wednesday. Wind speed should be calm for much of the day, slowing to 5 mph Wednesday night with a low around 64 degrees.

It was primary night Tuesday in several states, with Iowa one of being those setting up matchups this November. Some highlights from the evening...

Longtime Republican Congressman Steve King, often known more for his white nationalist ties and racist remarks than anything he did in congress, lost his primary to fellow conservative Randy Feenstra. Feenstra will be the heavy favorite to fill King’s spot in Iowa’s Republican leaning fourth district against Democratic challenger J.D. Scholten.

It wasn’t in the same national profile, but there was also a longtime incumbent Democrat side who got ousted Tuesday night. Vicki Lensing, who has represented Iowa City for 20 years in the Iowa House, lost to University of Iowa law professor Christina Bohannan. Lensing was in one of the few districts favorable to Democrats in the Iowa House in recent years, but she was challenged by Bohannan, who outwardly agreed with her on many issues, for not being aggressively progressive enough.

State Rep. Ashley Hinson, of Marion, a former local television news personality, won the right to take on first time incumbent U.S. Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer in the competitive first congressional district.

Marianette Miller-Meeks is very persistent. She won her fourth try at Iowa’s Democratic leaning 2nd Congressional District. Her longtime foe, Dave Loebsack, is retiring from his seat, so she will be facing someone new this year-- Rita Hart, a long state senator who also was a candidate for lieutenant governor candidate in 2018.

Theresa Greenfield topped a four-candidate field to win the opportunity to take on first time incumbent U.S. Senator Joni Ernst.

A day after Iowa matched one of the lowest daily coronavirus death tallies since the early days of the pandemic here, the state Tuesday matched the second-highest single-day total with 21 virus-related deaths in a 24-hour period.

The new deaths recorded Tuesday were more than the previous three days’ totals combined, at least temporarily halting what had been a downward trend in new daily deaths.By Tuesday afternoon, the state also surpassed 20,000 total confirmed cases since the virus was first detected March 8 in Iowa, according to state public health data.

There were several protests again in Iowa Tuesday night arguing for racial justice in general, and legal justice for George Floyd, who died last week while being forcibly arrested in Minneapolis by four officers. One officer has already been charged with murder in the death of Floyd, a black man, and protesters would like to see the other three officers charged as well.

Despite some minor tension, protests in Iowa remained in the large part peaceful Tuesday night.

This briefing is sponsored in part by Corridor Careers. Are you looking for a job? https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com) is a resource to local job seekers where they can get job tips, sign up for local job alerts, build a resume and more. Check it out at https://www.corridorcareers.com/ (CorridorCareers.com).

This is Stephen Colbert from the Gazette Digital News Desk and I’m here with your update for Tuesday, June 2, 2020.

Today will be sunny with a high of 92, but it should drop to 70 tonight and there’s a 50% chance of thunderstorms. Tomorrow will see a 30% chance of rain.

The number of coronavirus cases in Iowa rose over the weekend to 19,688 total cases and is now in all 99 Iowa counties. The number of statewide deaths attributed to coronavirus has risen to 539.

Coronavirus stats are all trending down. The seven-day averages for new coronavirus-related deaths, hospitalizations and new admissions all continued downward trends yesterday with only six new coronavirus-related deaths, the third consecutive day with single-digit new deaths. That brought the seven-day average — a data point used by experts to provide a broader view of the virus’ impact — to its lowest in nearly two weeks.

Riverside Casino reopened after a month long hiatus due to coronavirus restrictions. Of the many changes made by Riverside, the casino is making workers wear masks, attend training and follow strict cleaning protocols at their work stations and jobs. The casino is limiting its floor to 600 patrons at a time.

The casino opened at 12:01 a.m. yesterday for VIPs and saw about 100 on the casino floor at any point during the overnight hours to about 425 just before 1 p.m.

You can find all this and the rest of our coronavirus coverage at our dedicated coronavirus page, TheGazette.com/coronavirus.

After several peaceful protests in Eastern Iowafor over the weekend, things took a violent turn yesterday. A Davenport police officer was shot and wounded yesterday morning in a targeted attack, and two people were shot and killed in separate incidents related to the civil unrest stemming from the death of George Floyd. Another person was injured in gunfire at a jewelry store. Scott County imposed a curfew starting 9 p.m., and officials are calling for assistance from the National Guard.

In Coralville, nine people were arrested on charges including burglary, assault, participating in a riot, resulting in a new curfew for Coralville from 8 p.m. last night to 6 a.m. this morning.

Cedar Rapids police are investigating two incidents of damaged property that they said possibly were related to weekend protests. A fire was reported at 12:44 a.m yesterday at the former location of McGrath Ford on First Ave. SE, where an empty shed and vehicles were damaged. A second report of damage came from EZPAWN, on Wiley Blvd. SW, where a Molotov cocktail was thrown through an exterior door Sunday night. The Molotov cocktail broke the exterior door, but did not cause any further damage. Both incidents remain under investigation

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That’s it for today’s update. Be sure to subscribe to The Gazette Daily news podcast, or just tell your Amazon Alexa to “enable The Gazette Daily News skill" so you can get your daily briefing by simply saying “Alexa, what’s the news?"