Gazette Daily News Briefing, August 11
This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette Digital News Desk, and I’m here with your update for August 11, 2023.
According to the National Weather Service showers and thunderstorms will be likely Friday morning in the Cedar Rapids area but should likely end by 9 a.m. The sky will gradually clear after that Friday, with a high of 90 degrees. There will be a slight chance of rain Friday evening into Saturday.
The state’s investigation into illegal sports gambling in the athletic departments at the University of Iowa and Iowa State University picked up steam Thursday when another eight people — five of them current student athletes — were charged, bringing the number of people implicated so far to 15.
Like those charged before, the eight new defendants face charges of tampering with records, an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by up to two years in prison if convicted. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation has been leading the probe. The UI indicated earlier that 26 current athletes were involved, and ISU said there were “approximately 15” current athletes involved.
At ISU, running back Jirehl Brock headlines the list of Cyclones charged, along with tight end Deshawn Hanika, defensive tackle Isaiah Lee and offensive lineman Jake Remsburg. All players were starters last year.
At the UI, current wide receiver Jack Johnson, former wide receiver Arland Bruce IV, former safety Reggie Bracy and student manager Owen O’Brien were charged.
In a statement last week, after the first round of charges were announced, gambling regulators said they had uncovered no evidence that Hawkeye or Cyclone games were compromised, despite some of the player bets that were alleged.
Even if they avoid criminal penalties, several of these athletes could run into eligibility problems if the NCAA finds them to be in violation of anti-gambling rules.
A Linn County jury on Thursday acquitted a Swisher man charged with driving his pickup truck into abortion protesters last year.
The jury deliberated more than five hours Thursday after the three-day trial in Linn County District Court before finding David Alan Huston, 54, not guilty of assault by use of a dangerous weapon-vehicle, an aggravated misdemeanor, and leaving the scene of a personal injury accident.
A sealed verdict — not read in open court, which is typical in misdemeanor cases — was filed by Associate District Judge Russell Keast.
Ayla Boylen, a protester who testified against Huston, said Thursday, “I believe this acquittal sets a dangerous precedent for the safety of anyone practicing their First Amendment rights in the state of Iowa.”
The city of Cedar Rapids has finalized a $10 million deal to buy land from Rick and Marsha Stickle to build a flood control levee around Cedar Lake, with additional land providing for a flood plain — marking a key step to move forward with completion of the city’s network of flood protection.
The Cedar Rapids City Council unanimously voted this week to approve the city’s purchase of the property at and around 550 Stickle Dr. NE and Cedar Lake for a segment of the city’s approximately $750 million permanent flood control system. The deal also includes easement rights around Union Pacific’s north rail yard and the lake.
