Gazette Daily News Podcast, July 26

The heat will probably return soon, so let's enjoy this mild weather while we can this week. According to the National Weather Service it will be partly sunny with a high near 80 degrees in the Cedar Rapids area. Tuesday night there will be a 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Besides that, it will be mostly cloudy, with a low of around 67 degrees. The wind will be calm all day.

Why did the shooting at Maquoketa State Park happen? It is a question that for now has investigators stumped.

As they look for any connection between the family and the suspected shooter, they say they have uncovered little to establish a motive, noting they have not turned up any connection between Anthony Sherwin and those they say he killed at Maquoketa Caves State Park. Sherwin was later found dead in a wooded area of the park from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

What police have said is that Sherwin, 23, of the Omaha suburb of La Vista, had no criminal history before the attack, and investigators said he appeared to target the victims at random. Sherwin’s parents, who had been camping with their son, expressed incomprehension that he would carry out such an attack.

Cecilia Sherwin told the Omaha-World Herald Sunday that she believes her son went to help the family after hearing gunshots. She said their family does not accept the version of events described by police.

In addition to Sherwin, Tyler Schmidt, 42; his 42-year-old wife, Sarah Schmidt; and their 6-year-old daughter, Lula Schmidt, all died in the attack.

Personal information from staff at the Cedar Rapids Community School District may have been included in data stolen earlier this month in a cybersecurity breach, a memo from the district reveals.

The stolen data potentially included staff members’ full names, Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, bank account and routing numbers, and medical information including diagnosis and treatment information or health insurance information, according to a letter mailed to staff — obtained by The Gazette — dated July 22.

The Cedar Rapids Community School District has 3,500 employees.

All authorized access to district networks has been disabled and an investigation is being conducted by the district with external cybersecurity professionals, according to the letter.

Hobby Town owners Niels and Musetta Christiansen plan to close their hobby shop at 3655 First Ave. SE in Cedar Rapids, with all merchandise, equipment and fixtures for sale and regular prices discounted up to 50 percent.

The Town and Country Shopping Center shop will hold a private sale starting at 9 a.m. Wednesday, then open to the general public at 9 a.m. Thursday. according to a news release sent by Retail Sales Pro, the Florida-based company hired to facilitate the sale.

Inflation and rising rent costs were cited as the primary reasons for closing the retail venue.

The store sells a variety of hobby items including remote control cars, trains and airplanes, along with games, rockets, models, puzzles, kites, paint, parts and tools.