Gazette Daily News Podcast, January 4

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette digital news desk and I’m here with your update for Wednesday, January 4.

Well the thaw was fun while it lasted. According to the National Weather Service there will be a 50 percent chance of snow showers Wednesday, mainly after 8 a.m. When not snowing it will be cloudy, with a high near 35 degrees. Up to a half inch of snow accumulation is possible. There will be a slight chance of snow Wednesday night, with a low around 27 degrees.

Cedar Rapids police are investigating a fatal stabbing that left one woman dead Monday night. It is the city’s first homicide of the year.

Joint Communications Agency Dispatchers received a call at 6:44 p.m. Monday regarding a stabbing in the 2100 block of North Towne Ct. NE, according to a news release. When officers arrived on the scene, they reported discovering an adult female suffering from a stab wound.

Devonna Walker, 29, was treated at the scene and transported to a hospital, authorities said. She died from her wound.

Authorities said two individuals were detained, transported to the Cedar Rapids Police Department and interviewed. Both individuals were released pending further investigation after consultation with the Linn County Attorney’s Office.

The investigation is ongoing.

Iowa men’s basketball junior forward Patrick McCaffery announced Tuesday he is taking an indefinite leave of absence to address anxiety.

“I have been battling anxiety for a while,” he said in a statement, “and recently it has peaked, which has inhibited my preparation and performance on the court.”

McCaffery’s father and head coach, Fran McCaffery, said “Patrick is one of the millions of people who battle through anxiety on a daily basis. It has become more noticeable on and off the court over the past couple weeks.

“Patrick has the full support of his family, coaches, teammates, and administration as he fights through this. All of us admire his courage and willingness to be open about this struggle and we hope others know that they are not alone. We will be with him every step of the way.”

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird signed on to lawsuits challenging President Joe Biden's administration and Democratic-backed laws during her first day in office Tuesday.

Bird, a Republican who took over the office after defeating Democrat Tom Miller in the November election, made challenging the Biden administration in court a central plank of her campaign, along with her assertion she would "back the blue" and support law enforcement.

Bird signed onto a challenge led by Nebraska to Biden's student debt forgiveness plan, as well as lawsuits challenging vaccine mandates and challenging a provision of the American Rescue Plan Act that prevented states from using federal funds to cut state taxes.

Iowa had already been a party to the lawsuits Bird signed onto, her office said in a news release, but Miller had not attached his name to them.

Bird also appeared to represent Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds in her appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court seeking to reinstate Iowa's so-called "fetal heartbeat" law, which would make abortion illegal except in the earliest weeks of pregnancy.