Trish Mehaffey

A judge in Polk County moved a wrongful death trial to Scott over the Adventureland water raft ride that flipped over and killed 11-year-old Eastern Iowa boy in 2021. He said a fair and impartial jury couldn’t be selected in Polk because of pretrial publicity.

A Coralville man, originally charged with attempted murder, pleads to lesser charges in July 4 shooting in Iowa City. He faces 25 years in prison.

An Iowa City man was sentenced to 35 years in prison for a several burglaries and thefts at local businesses. Police say he was selling the stolen items to support himself. The stolen items totaled over $100,000.

A Cedar Rapids man was sentenced to 62 years in prison for pointing a shotgun at one officer and trying to kill another. The officers said his actions were “deliberate and with purpose” and he traumatized both them.

A Cedar Rapids man who participated in online group that solicited sexually graphic videos and photos from 13-year-old girl was sentenced to over 11 years in federal prison.

A federal judge sentenced a Cedar Rapids man to 15 years in federal prison for soliciting sexually explicit videos from minors in exchange for gift cards. He also used a hidden spy camera to secretly record a minor.

A Cedar Rapids man, who fired multiple shots with pellet gun at a neighbor’s house and additional shots at the police officers who responded, was sentenced Friday to 30 years in prison.

A federal judge sentenced a Cedar Rapids man to more than 55 years in prison for his 12-day crime spree, which included robbing seven businesses in November 2020. He had seven previous felony convictions.

Former members of the Benton County Board of Health are suing the supervisors and county over their termination in October. The petition contends the firings are connected to disputes over county-based medical system restructuring.

A convicted drug trafficker accused of hiring two others to kill Chris Bagley in 2018 pleaded not guilty this week. His trial is set for Jan. 16 in Linn County District Court.

A John Doe homicide victim killed in California in 1974 was identified last month through genetic geneaology as being a former Cedar Rapids man. Authorities believe he may be a possible victim of a notarious California serial killer who is on death row.

The 6th Judicial District Court is taking applications for an upcoming vacancy on the bench. Judge Fae Hoover is retiring at the end of December. Applications are due Dec. 15.

A Cedar Rapids man accused of trying to kill his wife by stabbing her multiple times in 2021 wants to keep his confession out of trial. His lawyers argue he had an “existing” mental condition and was in a psychotic state. Prosecution argues he understood all the questions and led the discussion during the interrogation.

A judge sentenced a Cedar Rapids man to 25 years for sexually abusing a child for over a year. The girl, now 8, told a forensic interviewer about the incidents and then, the abuser confessed to police that he sexually abused her for over a year.

The biggest “enemy” of a cold case is time. It it affects memories, evidence and paper reports. But time also can bring breakthroughs by way of new technology that wasn’t available when someone was killed and murders went unsolved. In a continuing series, The Gazette will revisit some of those unsolved cases in Cedar Rapids and Linn County. Investigators will share their insights and new information gathered over the years, and victims’ families will share memories of their loved ones.