Gazette Daily News Briefing, June 17
This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Friday, June 17.
The weather will settle into a pleasant state Friday and Saturday. According to the National Weather Service it will be sunny with a high near 87 degrees in the Cedar Rapids area. The low temperature will be around 60 degrees, with clear skies.
The black and red Juneteenth flag billowed outside City Hall as city staff and community members gathered Thursday morning to mark the first commemorative flag to be flown at a public building under a new city policy.
As a visual symbol of the city’s strides to be inclusive and welcoming of all residents and visitors, the Cedar Rapids City Council this past Tuesday — which was Flag Day — adopted a Display of Flags policy to govern when commemorative, special occasion and other ceremonial flags may be flown on flagpoles at city-owned properties.
Under the policy, other commemorative, special-occasion and ceremonial flags may be displayed to recognize state or federal holidays, to commemorate any period recognized by local proclamation, to accompany any official city action or ceremony, or in conjunction with an event involving any official Cedar Rapids Sister Cities.
Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating emancipation of enslaved African Americans. This year’s holiday will fall on this Sunday.
A Cedar Rapids police officer was seriously injured and hospitalized Wednesday morning after being repeatedly punched in the face by a fleeing suspect, authorities said.
The injured officer was identified as Rod Schulte, a 23-year employee of the police department.
Ryan Floerchinger, 34, of Cedar Rapids, faces charges of second-degree burglary, willful injury, assault on a peace officer with the intent to inflict serious injury, interference with official acts causing serious injury and trespass. He also was served with outstanding warrants.
The criminal complaint said Schulte responded to a harassment call at 2:20 a.m. Wednesday in the 300 block of Lewellen Dr. NW, where Florechinger’s former girlfriend lives.
Schulte located the suspect, later identified as Floerchinger, who took off running with the officer chasing. Floerchinger then charged Schulte, knocking the officer to the ground and began repeatedly punching him. He fled but was found inside a locked bathroom and taken into custody.
A Cedar Rapids police investigator testified Thursday during a hearing that a man accused of bludgeoning a woman to death with a board on April 2, waived his Miranda rights during an interview with police and said the man understood those rights.
Investigator Martin Devore said Arthur J. Flowers, 62, of Cedar Rapids, charged with first-degree murder, was hard to follow at times during the interview but seemed to understand the questions. He also never asked for a lawyer nor said he wouldn’t answer questions.
Flowers is asking the court to toss out his April 2 interview with police because he wasn’t fully aware of his rights and the consequences of signing the waiver. His attorney also is asking to move Flowers’ trial out of Linn County because of pretrial publicity.
Police say they were initially called to Flowers’ home for the report of a heroin overdose. However, they say when officers arrived and found the body of 22-year-old Emily Leonard her injuries and the blood splatter on the wall were indicative of a violent death, with the board the likely weapon.
