Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa — Authorities have issued an AMBER ALERT for two Polk County boys who was allegedly abducted by their biological mother on Dec. 28th. 12-year old Morgan, and 11-year old Landon Griffin, are believed to be in a brown 2003 Chevy Suburban with Iowa license plate CRY 371. They, along with their mother, 32-year old Mary Purcell, are believed to be on their way to Minnesota or Oregon. If you see the vehicle, call 9-1-1.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A special election has been scheduled for a House seat that was vacated by an incoming state senator. Gov. Terry Branstad signed a proclamation Friday that directs a special election be held Jan. 31 for House District 89, which includes parts of Scott County in eastern Iowa. The House seat was held by Democrat Jim Lykam, who resigned after winning a special election on Dec. 27 for the Iowa Senate.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — A judge has found a man guilty of murder in the fatal stabbing of his girlfriend in Dubuque. The Telegraph Herald reports the judge on Friday found 28-year-old Eddie J. Hicks guilty of first-degree murder in the June 2015 death of Kahdyesha J. Lemon. Prosecutors say Hicks stabbed his girlfriend more than 100 times in her Dubuque home. Hicks will be sentenced Jan. 23. First-degree murder in Iowa carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison.

REMSEN, Iowa (AP) — A truck driver was hurt when his vehicle collided with a train near the northwest Iowa city of Remsen. The Sioux City Journal reports the crash happened Friday morning at a rural crossing north of Remsen, a Plymouth County community about 30 miles northeast of Sioux City. The state patrol says the driver, whose name wasn’t released, was being treated for broken legs and other injuries. It’s not clear how the crash happened. The westbound train was hauling corn syrup.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s maximum-security prison for male offenders will have the first female warden in its 178-year history. The Board of Corrections has approved the appointment of Patti Wachtendorf as warden of the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison. Wachtendorf has been warden at the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women in Mitchellville, the state’s prison for female offenders, since 2009.