Gazette Daily News Podcast: Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024

– Linn County Attorney: Officer-involved shooting on New Year’s Day was justified

– Iowa City police investigating attempted abduction

– Second worker sues C6-Zero over injuries from 2022 blast

Episode Transcript

You are listening to The Gazette’s Daily News Podcast on Tuesday, February 20. This podcast gives quick bites from the latest headlines coming out of The Gazette newsroom. I’m Bailey Cichon.

Coming up, an officer-involved shooting in Cedar Rapids is determined to be justified by the Linn County Attorney

And later, Iowa City police are investigating an attempted abduction

Plus, a second worker is suing C6-Zero after being injured in the 2022 explosion

First, in the early hours of New Year’s day, five Cedar Rapids police officers shot at a man after he fired at the police while leading them on a car chase. Now, the Linn County Attorney has determined the officers were justified in their use of deadly force. The officers fired 63 rounds towards 20-year-old Michael Griffin, but none of the officers’ bullets hit him. According to a report released Monday by Linn County Attorney Nick Maybanks, Griffin had one gunshot wound in his forehead. Investigators believe this was self-inflicted using an AR-15 rifle. The shooting happened in the 5600 block of Mount Vernon Road SE. Police had been called to investigate a drive-by shooting at 6:30 a.m. on New Year’s Day.

The police chase started near 414 Longwood Dr. NE. Officers located a car matching a witness-provided description and attempted to pull over the vehicle. Griffin shot at police multiple times while trying to evade them. An officer eventually stopped the car with a PIT maneuver. Griffin shot himself as police approached the vehicle.

A 17-year-old was a passenger in the vehicle when the car chase started. The passenger told police that the night before, the pair had attended multiple parties, including one at 414 Longwood Dr. That morning, Griffin told the teen he had to quote “handle some business” end quote before taking the teen home. Griffin was armed with an AR-15 and told the teen another person had stolen his gun. The pair returned to the house at Longwood Drive where Griffin got out of the car and talked with the house’s residents. When he returned, he shot toward the house several times with the AR-15. While Griffin was fleeing, he was on the phone with his mother–this was confirmed by his mother and by the teen. Griffin told her that he had taken his brother’s AR-15, was being chased by police and was going to shoot at the police. He said he believed he was going to die that morning. The 17-year-old passenger begged Griffin to let him out of the car. Griffin dropped the teen off near the intersection of First Avenue E and 12th St. SE and began firing at police about 20 seconds later.

Griffin’s mother told police that her son kept multiple guns unlocked in their home. She said Griffin was receiving treatment and taking medication for suspected mental illnesses. He had talked about suicide and going on a shooting spree in the past.

The report said quote “In her opinion, she did not believe he wanted to shoot and kill the police but wanted the police to kill him” end quote.

On Monday, CRPD released a statement commending the five officers involved in the shooting. All of the officers have been on leave since Jan. 1. The statement said quote, “Our focus now is on returning these officers to full working status while ensuring their physical and mental health needs are met. Events like this take a toll on the officers, their families, and the Department, and we understand the importance of support.” end quote.

The full report as well as a map of the vehicle pursuit route is available at The Gazette dot com. Follow the link in this episode’s description to get there.

Next, Iowa City police are looking for help identifying a suspect in an attempted abduction that occurred near Oakland Cemetary Saturday. Police responded at 10:25 p.m. to a report that someone had attempted to abduct a 12-year-old child. The suspect’s gender was not released though the person was described as wearing a black leather coat, black gloves and a hooded sweatshirt. If you have information about the incident or surveillance footage from the area, contact Detective Ryan Wood at 319-356-5292 or at rwood@iowa-city.org.

Next, multiple people were injured on December 8, 2022 when an explosion occurred at the C6-Zero facility in Marengo. Now, a second person who was injured is suing the company. Cody and Taylar Blasberg of Williamsburg claim in the lawsuit that C6-Zero’s negligence caused the blast that injured Cody. Cody was a contractor hired to repair a conveyor belt at the plant. According to the lawsuit, Blasberg was instructed to work on the belt while it was running quote “to avoid a shutdown” end quote. He was standing in the conveyor’s open hatch when flammable vapors ignited. He was severely burned and put on a ventilator. The lawsuit alleges that not only did C6-Zero fail to provide a safe work environment, but after the explosion, the company did not report injuries including quote “an inpatient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye as a result of a work-related incident to OSHA within 24 hours.” end quote. Iowa OSHA originally found 15 serious violations at the plant totalling $130,515. The agency and C6-Zero reached a settlement May 26 that $95,711 would be paid by June 19, 2023.

C6-Zero has not yet filed a response to the lawsuit. The explosion and fire injured nine employees, caused nearby homes to evacuate, and polluted soil and water. For a closer look at the lawsuit and a timeline, read the story linked in this episode’s description or find it at The Gazette dot com.

Finally, let’s take a look at today’s weather in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Today will be partly cloudy with a high of 52 degrees. Temperatures will drop to 36 degrees tonight. Wednesday will follow suit. Expect a high of 56 degrees, a low of 38 degrees and partly cloudy skies.

Thank you for listening to The Gazette’s Daily News Podcast. Stay up to date with the latest news from Eastern Iowa at the gazette dot com. I’m Bailey Cichon.

Comments: bailey.cichon@thegazette.com