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KXEL Morning News for Thu. Mar. 04, 2021

By Tim Martin Mar 4, 2021 | 6:15 AM

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds received a shot of the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday morning at her weekly news conference. “I wouldn’t ask Iowans to do anything that I’m not willing to do,” Reynolds said. She added that the vaccine was both safe and effective and she said she appreciated the convenience of getting it done with just one dose. Reynolds says the 25,600 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine allocated to Iowa have arrived and the state will start vaccinating the next tier of eligible Iowans on Thursday. That tier consists of essential workers in agriculture production, food processing, manufacturing, and distribution industries.  

A driver who reached speeds over 100 mph while avoiding a traffic stop in Linn County died after crashing his car early Wednesday morning. It all started after a Linn County sheriff’s deputy tried to pull over a car in Atkins on suspicion of running a stop sign. Instead of stopping, the driver sped away and onto U.S. Highway 30, reaching speeds of 115 mph. Officials say the chase ended just after 4 a.m. when the car drove off a Benton County road and crashed into a culvert. The man driving was ejected from the car and died at the scene, while a woman also in the car was seriously injured and flown to an Iowa City hospital; she is expected to survive. The incident is being investigated by the Iowa State Patrol.

A Stuart, Iowa man faces harassment charges after the Iowa State Patrol said he left a threatening and profane voice mail with the governor’s office in January. 48-year-old Harvey Eugene Hunter has been charged with first-degree harassment. Officials say Hunter left a long, profanity-laced voicemail with the governor’s office on Jan. 5 because he was upset over COVID-19 regulations. Hunter was arrested on harassment charges last month and was released on a $2,000 bond. He appeared in court Wednesday and entered a not guilty plea.  

A Charles City man convicted of the murder and sexual abuse of his 3-year-old relative will remain behind bars after the state appeals court upheld a lower court’s rejection of his request to revisit his conviction. Edgar Concepcion Jr., who was 14 at the time of the murder of Krystel Banes of Charles City in July 2009, was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in November 2010. A 2014 U.S. Supreme Court ruling regarding penalties for those juveniles convicted of serious crimes required him to be re-sentenced. He received life with the possibility of parole in February of 2016, and remains in state prison. Concepcion appealed his conviction on the grounds that new evidence cleared him of wrongdoing, that his lawyer failed to challenge the court’s determination that he was competent to stand trial, and that his trial attorney was ineffective, among other claims…but the appeals court denied those claims. 

Waterloo police have arrested one person in connection with the killing of a man in 2020. Police arrested 28-year-old Stephen Devon Phillips of Waterloo on one count of first-degree murder in the shooting death of 30-year-old Terrell Bernard Flowers. Bond has been set at $1 million. Flowers was shot in the 300 block of Crescent Place around 8:40 p.m. on May 15 last year. He was taken to the hospital by private vehicle and later died. Phillips has been in jail on other charges since shortly after the fatal shooting. Police say after the shooting, Phillips went to the area of Linwood Avenue where he tried to rob another man at gunpoint during a cookout. He is accused of taking a cell phone, apartment keys and cards, before leaving.

Iowa Workforce Development announced Wednesday it has added a remote/work from home jobs display to its website in order to assist job seekers specifically looking for these opportunities. Officials say it will make it easier to find remote jobs from the more than 76,000 jobs available in Iowa at present. The list of remote/work from home jobs can be found on the IowaWorks.gov home page.

An Ottumwa man is facing several charges after police say he posed as a member of law enforcement and brought a gun to a pre-school. The incident happened last Wednesday at the Pickwick Early Childhood Center in Ottumwa. Police say they received information that 40-year-old Jason Haut was seen carrying a handgun at the pre-school. Staff questioned Haut and they say he represented himself as a member of law enforcement. Police say Haut had the gun in a holster and did not make any threats to staff. Haut was arrested Tuesday morning and is charged with three counts of being a felon in possession of a firearm, carrying weapons on school grounds, carrying weapons generally, and impersonating a public official.