The father of slain Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts has thanked the Hispanic community for its support during the long search for his daughter. A Mexican farmworker suspected of being in the U.S. illegally has been charged in Tibbetts’ death. Speaking Sunday at a ceremony for his daughter, Rob Tibbetts didn’t directly address comments by President Donald Trump and others who seized upon the suspect’s citizenship to argue for changes in U.S. immigration laws.

However, The Des Moines Register reports Tibbetts said that in the weeks he was searching for his daughter, he encountered Hispanics in Brooklyn, Iowa, who were sensitive and kind. He says members of the Hispanic community have “the same values as Iowans,” and that he considers them “Iowans with better food.”

A woman was flown from the scene of a single-vehicle accident Saturday evening, in Page County. Authorities were notified of the accident that occurred about two-miles south of Coin, at around 5:40-p.m. The investigation showed that 42-year old Kimberly Ann Smith, of Shenandoah, was driving a 1997 Ford Taurus eastbound on 290th, when for unknown reasons the vehicle lost control on the gravel road and entered the south ditch. The car rolled over and came to rest on its top.

Smith said the last time she remembered was at 2:00 PM. Smith was the only occupant in the vehicle and the driver according to her. She sufferedinjuries and was taken by LifeNet Helicopter from the scene to the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, for treatment of undisclosed injuries. No charges have been filed at this time. The Page County Sheriff’s Office was assisted at the scene by Shenandoah Ambulance service, Coin Fire & Rescue, and LifeNet Ambulance service.

Page County Sheriff Lyle Palmer reports that a search warrant executed late Sunday night by Page County Deputies at 409 Lincoln Street in Coin, resulted in the arrest of a man on drug charges. The search warrant and charges were part of an ongoing investigation into illegal substances. 44-year old Jason Ludwig Reents, of Coin, was arrested on charges of Tax payment required for possession (class D felony), Possession of drug paraphernalia (a simple misdemeanor), Manufacturing of a controlled substance (marijuana) (class D felony), Possession of a controlled substance (methamphetamine) (a serious misdemeanor), and Unlawful possession of prescription drug or device (a serious misdemeanor). Reents was transported to the Page County Jail where he was held on $12,300.00 bond pending appearance in front of a Magistrate Judge

The father of a young boy who shot himself while staying at a suburban Des Moines hotel is now charged with child endangerment causing bodily injury. The felony charge against 29-year-old Jonathan Hauser of Council Bluffs resulted from the August 19th shooting at the Sterling Inn hotel in Clive. Police say Hauser’s two-year-old son found a loaded gun in a suitcase and picked it up and pulled the trigger. The child was shot through the chest and neck, but police say he survived as was released from the hospital. Hauser was booked and released on a promise to appear in court again on September 4th.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County say a man from Ringgold County was arrested Sunday night, on a drug charge. 25-year old Mark Donald Cooley, of Mt. Ayr, was arrested at around 9:15-p.m. and charged with possession of marijuana. Cooley was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $1,000 cash bond.

(DES MOINES) – Gov. Kim Reynolds ordered all flags in Iowa to be lowered to half-staff effective immediately until sunset on Sunday, September 2, 2018, in honor and remembrance of Sen. John McCain. He passed away on Saturday, August 25, 2018, at the age of 81. Reynolds said “We lost an American hero. John McCain’s life reflected some of the very best our country had to offer. He understood the greatness of America, fought tirelessly for our values and put forth decades of admirable service to this nation. He was a loving husband and father, and we will never forget him or the legacy he leaves behind.”

Flags will be at half-staff on the State Capitol Building and on flag displays in the Capitol Complex. Flags will also be half-staff on all public buildings, grounds and facilities throughout the state. Individuals, businesses, schools, municipalities, counties and other government subdivisions are encouraged to fly the flag at half-staff for the same length of time as a sign of respect.

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) — A third trial is set to begin for an Illinois man convicted of the 1990 killing of a 9-year-old girl in Iowa. The Quad-City Times reports that 56-year-old Stanley Liggins will go on trial Tuesday on one count of first-degree murder in the death of Jennifer Lewis. Juries have twice convicted Liggins in the death of Jennifer Lewis, who disappeared from her Rock Island, Illinois, neighborhood. Her burned remains were found near a Davenport school in September 1990.

The Iowa Supreme Court overturned Liggins’ 1993 conviction. The Iowa Court of Appeals in November 2013 vacated Liggins’ second conviction. The court ruled that 77 police reports weren’t provided to Liggins’ defense team and that prosecutors didn’t disclose that a key witness was a paid police informant. Liggins has maintained his innocence.