Gazette Daily News Podcast, April 20

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This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Tuesday, April 20.

We are continuing our hot and cold weather cycle with a return to cold. The good news is that we will be back to warm by the end of the week.

According to the National Weather Service there will be a slight chance for snow before 8 a.m. Tuesday in the Cedar Rapids area. Also there will be a slight chance for rain through the rest of the early morning and afternoon. Besides that it will be mostly cloudy and brisk, with a high near 45 degrees. For all you spring gardeners out there, make some plans to protect your plants, because widespread frost is expected early Wednesday morning.

A day before a lawsuit asserting a white police officer recklessly shot and paralyzed a Black motorist in 2016 was to go to trial, an insurance carrier for the city of Cedar Rapids agreed Monday to pay motorist Jerime Mitchell and his wife $8 million.

The city maintained it was prepared to go to trial and defend the actions of the officer involved in the shooting, Lucas Jones, even though the police department since has fired him. But insurance carrier States Insurance agreed to the deal, without acknowledging fault or liability on the part of the defendants. The settlement is subject to approval by the City Council, which is set to next meet on April 27.

Mitchell’s attorneys said they believe the $8 million deal with Cedar Rapids is a “record settlement for a police-involved shooting case in Iowa.” In comparison, a federal lawsuit brought by the estate of Autumn Steele, who accidentally was shot and killed by a Burlington police officer in 2015, was settled for $2 million.

Mitchell was shot in the early morning of Nov. 1, 2016, near Coe College. Authorities said Jones stopped Mitchell after spotting a light out on his pickup truck's license plate. Police later said Mitchell had marijuana, a scale, and cash in his possession at the time of the arrest, but no charges were ever brought against him.

It appears a state budget bill dealing with health and human services could become a sticking point between Republicans in the Iowa House and Iowa Senate as they work to close out the legislative session.

Senate Republicans are pushing for a state takeover of mental-health funding currently supported by local property taxes, and creation of an asset verification system for food assistance recipients — ideas that have not caught fire across the Capitol rotunda with their House GOP compatriots.

House Republicans have expressed caution about making major tax changes this year due to economic uncertainty caused by the pandemic and some yet-to-be-clarified stipulations that might come with billions of dollars in federal pandemic relief.

The Eastern Iowa Health Center has opened its COVID-19 vaccine clinic to anyone age 18 and older.

The Cedar Rapids-based clinic, which is a federally qualified health center, will offer the two-dose Moderna vaccine, according to a news release Monday. People who receive the first dose will be scheduled for the follow-up second dose, officials said.

Those seeking a COVID-19 vaccine can schedule an appointment with the Eastern Iowa Health Center online. You can find them at EasternIowaHealthCenter.com.

This briefing is sponsored in part by Corridor Careers. Are you looking for a job? CorridorCareers.com is a resource to local job seekers where they can get job tips, sign up for local job alerts, build a resume and more. Check it out at CorridorCareers.com.