Monday morning read: Proposed legislation would introduce one of strictest anti-abortion laws, Sunday fire near NewBo, 'unacceptable weaknesses' found in UI emergency plans

Proposed Iowa legislation would introduce one of strictest anti-abortion laws nationwide- Legislation heading to the Senate floor for debate could make Iowa among the states with the strictest abortion restrictions.

It has the potential to challenge Roe v. Wade, the national precedent on a woman's right to abortion services, and would endanger accreditation for the University of Iowa's obstetrics and gynecology residency program.

Senate Study Bill 3143, which passed through last week's 'funnel' when the Senate Judiciary Committee advanced it with an 8-5 vote, would prohibit physicians from performing an abortion in Iowa if a heartbeat is detected in the fetus. Read more...

Vacant building catches fire near Cedar Rapids' NewBo neighborhood- The fire was reported at 11:30 a.m. Sunday and firefighters arrived to find the building, which has been reported as a vacant structure, fully engulfed with fire.

According to Cedar Rapids public safety spokesman Greg Buelow, there have been no injuries reported and there have been no evacuations required.

The release states that firefighters had the fire mostly under control as of 12:15 p.m. as they battled the fire from the mid-rise of adjacent buildings to the north. Read more...

Audit finds 'unacceptable weaknesses' in University of Iowa emergency plans- The University of Iowa's emergency preparedness — including its ability to handle bomb threats, health crises and hostage situations — has 'unacceptable weaknesses' that expose the campus to 'unacceptable risks,' a new audit reports.

The report, completed in October and made public last week, found problems with the UI's emergency policies and plans, its training protocols, its communication strategies and its incident follow-ups. Read more...

Cedar Rapids code school graduates all find employment- A new, local code school has hit two milestones having graduated its first class and with all three members finding full-time jobs within two months.

DeltaV Code School, a program by the New Bohemian Innovation Collaborative, started to help ramp up the number of Iowans who can fill thousands of open computer science jobs in the state. Instead of students going through a two- or four-year college program, DeltaV puts them through an intense 20-week series of courses. Read more...

Cedar Rapids RoughRiders beat Madison for Coach Mark Carlson's 600th career win- Mark Carlson won his 600th career game as head coach/general manager of the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders when his team beat the Madison Capitols on Sunday afternoon, 4-2.

The win stopped a four-game losing streak for the RoughRiders (16-19-7, 39 standings points), who are eighth in the nine-team USHL Eastern Conference, though only three points out of a playoff spot. The top six teams in each division qualify for the United States Hockey League playoffs. Read more...