A mother and son from Iowa were in federal court Wednesday facing charges from the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Deborah Sandoval of Des Moines and her son Salvador of Ankeny were both accused of going to Washington on January 6th to try to stop Congress from certifying the 2020 election.
Just as her trial was set to begin, Deborah Sandoval struck a plea agreement. By admitting to illegally entering the Capitol, three other charges were dropped. She now faces a maximum of up to one year in prison.
A trial for Salvador Sandoval is now underway in D.C. District Court. He faces 12 charges, including six felonies. Prosecutors say he pushed police officers guarding the Capitol rotunda and tried to take a riot shield.
FBI investigators were tipped off to his involvement in the riot from a video he posted on Snapchat.
South Dakota prosecutors have dropped all charges against the head of an Indigenous-led advocacy organization stemming from a protest during then-President Donald Trump’s visit to Mount Rushmore. NDN Collective President Nick Tilsen was among those arrested July 3, 2020, when the protest seeking return of the Black Hills to Lakota control escalated into a scuffle with law enforcement. The charges included robbery and assault of a law enforcement officer. Court documents show that prosecutors filed the dismissal Nov. 18. Tilsen said in a statement Tuesday that the dismissal shows the charges were “bogus from the start.”
Members of a key state panel say a recession would likely have a limited impact on Iowa’s economy. They’re predicting state tax receipts will decline slightly in 2023 due to cuts in the top income tax rate for individuals and corporations as well as the end of state taxation of retirement income.
The Revenue Estimating Conference predicts the state will collect more than $10 billion in taxes during the current fiscal year, which ends June 30th. For more on the story from Radio Iowa click here.
News release from Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds:
Gov. Reynolds issues a statement on December REC projections
DES MOINES – Gov. Reynolds released the following statement today in response to the December REC projections:
“December’s REC projections confirm that we are achieving our goal of correcting the state’s overcollection of taxpayer dollars and returning it to hardworking Iowans. The historic tax cuts I signed into law earlier this year will begin to take effect in a few weeks, and as planned and expected, the projections show a slight dip in the state’s revenue. However, our state’s budget remains robust, and we continue to invest in key priorities to benefit all Iowans.”
Eight people want to serve on the Woodbury County Board of Supervisors. That’s according to Woodbury County Auditor and Election Commissioner Pat Gill. Gill read a list of residents interested in taking over for Rocky De Witt who won election to the Iowa Statehouse in November.
“Nathan Heilman, Angela Kayl, John VanEldik, Mark Nelson, Willard Brian McNaughton, Barbara Sloniker, Jeanette Beekman and Charles Clark.”
Six are Republicans and two no party (Kayl and Clark). A committee consisting of Gill and two other county officials will pick the person who will take over the post.
The number of Iowans hospitalized who have tested positive for COVID-19 remains stable from last week.
Federal officials report as of today 256 Iowans hospitalized have tested positive for the virus.
That’s as state health officials say nearly 5 thousand positive tests were reported in the past seven days – up from last week.
State officials also added 27 Iowans to the COVID death count. 10,343 Iowans have died from the virus so far.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, 64% have completed their primary COVID vaccine series. And 16.4 percent have received the most recent bivalent booster.
Nebraska saw a slight decrease in COVID cases with more than 2,700 last week.
The University of South Dakota has announced that in-state tuition rates will be expanding to a couple more states.
According to a release from USD, the South Dakota Advantage program will be adding the states of Illinois and Wisconsin for new freshman and new transfer students.
Officials estimate around 30% of nonresident students remain in the state after graduation.
The South Dakota Advantage program is currently available to students from Colorado, Iowa, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wyoming.
Former University of Iowa President Willard “Sandy” Boyd, who led the campus for a dozen years including during the Vietnam War, died Tuesday. He was 95. The university declined to give a cause of death. Boyd was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, on March 29, 1927. He received bachelor of science in law and bachelor of laws degrees from the University of Minnesota, and a master of law and doctor of juridical science degrees from the University of Michigan. He served as president at Iowa from 1969 to 1981, when he became president of the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. He later returned to the UI as a law professor and served as interim president in 2002 and 2003.