116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Trish Mehaffey
Reporter covering state and federal courts, and whatever legal issues come my way. I also provide live coverage of criminal trials on Twitter @tmehaffey and welcome comments and questions from readers during the trials. Outside of work I love movies, tennis and my Kansas State Wildcats! Go Cats! Stay informed with the Public Safety newsletter.
Latest Articles by Trish Mehaffey
Crime & Courts May. 19, 2025 7:46 am171d ago
The University of Iowa College of Law Prosecutor Intern Program has created a pipeline for future prosecutors and judges across the state. It’s a unique program that allows students to prosecute simple misdemeanors. Some even get the opportunity to work with a county attorney on a felony trial.
Crime & Courts May. 19, 2025 8:15 am171d ago
The child was in another apartment, but the mother had to be rescued from a bathroom window. She told police she planned to kill herself and her child.
Crime & Courts May. 16, 2025 5:21 pm173d ago
A bitcoin company is granted an appeal for over $28,000 in seized cash retrieved from bitcoin ATMs last year. The cash was seized in a fraud investigation. A district court judge had ordered the money to be returned to the alleged fraud victims -- but the Iowa Supreme Court disagreed.
Crime & Courts May. 16, 2025 8:12 am174d ago
A New York man who sent sexually explicit photos and asked for some in exchange from a person he believed was a 14-year-old girl on an dating app last August has pleaded guilty. He faces up to 10 years in prison.
Crime & Courts May. 16, 2025 8:13 am174d ago
An Iowa City man was sentenced to nearly 17 years in federal prison for distributing and receiving child porn. He electronic devices contained “hundreds” of images, including children under age 1.
Crime & Courts May. 12, 2025 2:36 pm178d ago
Johnson County Sheriff’s Sgt. Mike Hynes still relishes the challenge of starting the Tiffin patrol division as enters it’s second year of a partnership between the sheriff’s office and the City of Tiffin. Hynes says it’s been the “most rewarding” of his career.
Crime & Courts May. 12, 2025 2:45 pm178d ago
A Linn County jury convicts Chicago man for robbing a Marion couple at gunpoint last July. He faces up to 75 years in prison.
Crime & Courts May. 12, 2025 2:48 pm178d ago
Winneshiek County Sheriff Dan Marx is asking a judge to dismiss an Iowa Attorney General Office’s petition against him for not cooperating with federal authorities to enforce immigration laws because his Facebook post that sparked the dispute has been removed -- so there’s no “ongoing violation.”.
Crime & Courts May. 9, 2025 8:02 am181d ago
A Cedar Rapids man, who concealed the gun his stepson used to kill a DoorDash delivery driver in 2023, was given two years probation.
Crime & Courts May. 6, 2025 5:19 pm183d ago
Leif Olson, a deputy Iowa Attorney General who came to Iowa from the Texas Attorney General’s Office and previously served in the U.S. Department of Labor, has been nominated to be the next U.S. Attorney in the Northern District of Iowa.
Crime & Courts May. 6, 2025 7:28 am184d ago
The Marion man had just talked to a police investigator before witnesses said he intentionally drove into westbound traffic, crashing into vehicle driven by a pregnant woman, court records show. Her serious injuries included the premature termination of her pregnancy.
Crime & Courts May. 5, 2025 9:37 am185d ago
A Cedar Rapids man was sentenced to 30 years in prison for causing a fatal crash with a motorcyclist on I-380 in 2022. Carlos Adail Garcia was intoxicated and had drugs in system at the time of the crash, according to testimony.
Crime & Courts May. 2, 2025 7:16 am188d ago
About 70 legal professions and community members celebrated the National Law Day of Action by gathering on the steps of the Linn County Courthouse to show their support for an independent judiciary and the rule of law.
Crime & Courts May. 2, 2025 8:44 am188d ago
A masked robber, who was identified last year after Marion police saw his sinister clown tattoo on his leg, pleaded to a lesser charge and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. He must serve a mandatory five years before being eligible for parole.
Crime & Courts May. 1, 2025 1:14 pm189d ago
A Gladbrook man who purchased child pornography through internet messaging apps has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison. He was previously convicted for sexual exploitation of a minor in Tama County District Court.

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