Friday Morning Read: Minimum wage, murder trial curveball, Staples closing stores

VOIDING MINIMUM WAGE HIKES? — House Republicans voted Thursday to pre-empt local governments from usurping state authority in business and employment matters after Democrats tried unsuccessfully to raise the statewide minimum hourly wage to $10.75 by 2019 and preserve higher wage floors adopted by four counties. Read more: https://www.thegazette.com/government-politics/iowa-house-voids-minimum-wage-hikes-in-four-counties/

UNUSUAL MOVE IN MURDER TRIAL — Attorneys arrived in Linn County on Thursday afternoon anticipating a plea deal in a nearly eight-year-old murder. But instead of entering a plea in the Oct. 8, 2009, shooting death of John Versypt in Iowa City, Justin Marshall, 26, informed 6th District Court Judge Sean McPartland that he wishes to represent himself. He also asked to delay the date of his retrial, which had been scheduled to start Monday. 'I was not expecting that,' Johnson County Attorney Janet Lyness said after Thursday's hearing. Read more: https://www.thegazette.com/news/justin-marshall-to-represent-himself-in-murder-trial/

STAPLES CLOSING STORES — Staples shares fell as much as 7.4 percent in early trading after the company posted disappointing results and announced plans to shutter 70 stores in North America. Staples operates Corridor stores at 2431 Wiley Blvd. SW in Cedar Rapids and 820 S. Riverside Dr. in Iowa City. A Staples store at Marketplace on First, 4601 First Ave. SE, closed in September. Read more: https://www.thegazette.com/news/staples-to-close-70-stores/

NCAA HOPES DASHED — The final two weeks of the regular season seemed to show a seismic shift in the way the Iowa men's basketball team executed defensively. That changed drastically on Thursday night at Verizon Center, as Iowa fell in lopsided fashion to Indiana, 95-73. Read more: https://www.thegazette.com/sports/iowa-reverts-at-the-wrong-time-falls-to-indiana/

QUOTABLE — 'I want him as a representative to stand up for all Iowans and for all communities, not a particular interest, (and) hear what the people have to say.' Redgie Blanco of Cedar Falls, asking Rep. Rod Blum for a town hall meeting on health care reform