Story from the Associated Press about concerns surrounding the new gun law:
Gun deaths have been surging in Iowa as a law is set to go into effect that will allow people to more easily buy handguns and carry them in public without training or a permit. The Iowa Department of Public Health said Tuesday that a record 353 people died from gunshot wounds in Iowa in 2020, a 23% increase from the previous high in 2019. This year saw 85 firearm homicides, an 80% increase. Suicides still made up three of every four gun deaths in the state. A leading gun violence researcher said he expects Iowa’s sweeping handgun deregulation that begins Thursday to make things even worse.
The Sioux City police officer seen aiming a Taser at a Black customer at a Perkins restaurant late last month has a history of involvement in use of force incidents.
More than 5,000 people have signed a petition calling for Officer Thad Boyer to be removed from duty, as the officer rehired in 2019 after brutally beating a man in 2004 was captured pushing a Black man into a table and threatening to Tase him at a Perkins restaurant on April 29.
Footage of the encounter was shared widely on social media, and shows Boyer confronting the customer, identified as 29-year-old John Wright.
Sioux City Officer Thad Boyer (right) confronted a customer, identified as 29-year-old John Wright (left), at a restaurant on April 29. (Photos: Video screenshot, citizen caught)
The gun looked real enough to the teen and her friend. Police say Zack Lee Smith, a 20-year-old Iowa man, pretending to be his own father, emailed his 18-year-old girlfriend..
SPM NEWS 4.30.21
Officials with the Sioux City Police Department say a suspected murder-suicide claimed the lives of a Sioux City couple yesterday.
Investigators say evidence at the scene shows that 60-year-old Nicholas Socknat may be responsible for the death of 51-year-old Kelli Socknat before shooting himself. The two lived together at a home near Morningside Elementary School.
Spokesperson Sgt. Jeremy McClure says there are no reports of disturbances involving the couple. However, given the circumstances detectives consider this a case an of domestic violence.
McClure add if anyone who is experiencing domestic violence, they can contact the police department or SafePlace, formerly known as the Council on Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence.