Iowa

Iowa Senate OKs bill helping Boy Scout sex abuse survivors recoup more money in settlement

Published

2 years ago

April 9, 2024

Iowa Senate OKs bill helping Boy Scout sex abuse survivors recoup more money in settlement

Iowa Boy Scouts who were sexually abused as children will be able to recover more money through a national bankruptcy settlement under a bill passed Tuesday by the Iowa Senate.

The Senate voted 46-0 Tuesday to pass Senate File 2431, sending it to the House for consideration.

“Although it’s not going to be able to take away the true pain that happened years ago, hopefully this will give a little bit of relief to their lives going forward,” said Sen. Tim Kraayenbrink, R-Fort Dodge, the bill’s floor manager.

Hundreds of Iowans are part of a national 2020 bankruptcy settlement agreement with the Boy Scouts of America, which designates a $2.46 billion fund to settle decades of sexual abuse cases from over 82,000 victims who were abused by Boy Scout troop leaders.

But because of Iowa’s strict statute of limitations, former Boy Scouts from Iowa are at risk of losing out on millions of dollars unless the state changes its law.

The legislation removes the statute of limitations for claims related to child sexual abuse only for people who are part of the 2020 bankruptcy settlement.

More: Iowa looks to change statute of limitations law to help Boy Scout sexual abuse survivors

Without the law change, Iowans would be at a disadvantage because the settlement uses a matrix of factors to determine how much victims can be paid. They include how much abuse the victim suffered, how long it lasted and the state’s statute of limitations on sexual abuse claims.

Iowa’s statute of limitations on civil claims requires child sexual abuse victims to file suit by the time they turn 19. Or, if the abuse is discovered after the victim becomes an adult, the claim must be filed within four years of when they make the connection between their abuse and their injuries.

Sen. Janet Petersen, D-Des Moines, said the bill will prevent Iowa abuse survivors from being financially penalized simply because their abuse occurred in Iowa.

“I also want to thank all of the Iowans who I know are listening — I’m hearing them on my phone — who shared their stories with lawmakers, painful stories, requesting our help to prevent a system that failed to protect them as children from harming them again as grown-ups,” she said.

More: Iowa sex abuse victim in Boy Scouts case could be among hundreds shortchanged by state law

The bill passed Tuesday by the Senate only applies to people who are part of the Boy Scouts of America settlement. It does not change the current civil statute of limitations law for other survivors of child sexual abuse.

In 2021, Iowa lawmakers removed the statute of limitations for filing criminal charges in child sexual abuse cases, but left in place the strict limit on civil lawsuits.

Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on Twitter at @sgrubermiller.

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Iowa State basketball vs. Arizona State prediction, 3 things to watch

Published

9 hours ago

March 6, 2026

Press Room

Iowa State basketball vs. Arizona State prediction, 3 things to watch

It’s the last dance at Hilton Coliseum for Cyclone lifer Tamin Lipsey and other Iowa State basketball seniors.

The Cyclones will wrap up the regular season with one final home game on March 7 against visiting Arizona State. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on FS1.

Iowa State (24-6, 11-6 Big 12 Conference) is looking to shake off a two-game losing skid after suffering back-to-back losses to Texas Tech and Arizona.

Meanwhile, Arizona State (16-14, 7-10) is coming to Ames fresh off of consecutive wins over Utah and Kansas. The Sun Devils upset the Jayhawks 70-60 on March 3.

Here are three things to watch for in Saturday’s game:

Arizona State enters Hilton Coliseum with momentum

The Sun Devils are coming off of back-to-back wins, including an upset of Kansas in their last outing at home on March 3.

The Sun Devils built a 40-20 halftime lead and hung on for the win.

Arizona State also had a 72-67 win over Texas Tech on Feb. 17. It was the game in which J.T. Toppin went down with a season-ending ACL injury in the final six minutes of the contest.

Pepperdine transfer Moe Odum is shining in his first season at the power-conference level. He had 23 points in both games against Kansas and Texas Tech. In the recent win over Kansas, he had a game-high 23 points and shot 5-of-10 from long range, with four boards, six assists and two steals.

The senior guard is averaging 17.3 points, 5.9 assists and 1.4 steals per game for the Sun Devils.

The frontcourt is anchored by 7-foot-1 center Massamba Diop. Diop is one of the top shot-blockers and rim-protectors in the conference, averaging 2.2 blocks per game, second to Kansas’ Flory Bidunga. The freshman center has had three or more blocks in nine Big 12 games this season.

Senior guard Anthony Johnson has developed into a reliable sixth man for the Sun Devils. It’s his first season of Division I basketball after playing the last few years at NAIA-level University of the Cumberlands. Johnson is a two-way contributor off the bench. He is averaging 13.4 points and 3.1 rebounds per game. Primarily a slashing threat, Johnson has shown he can knock down 3s when left open.

Iowa State basketball guard Tamin Lipsey on increased urgency

Iowa State basketball guard Tamin Lipsey on team-wide increased urgency.

Arizona State’s towering size

The Sun Devils have plenty of length and size throughout their roster.

According to KenPom, Arizona State has the ninth-tallest roster in Division I basketball in terms of average height across the team.

The Sun Devils’ starting five features three players who are 6-foot-11 or taller.

Aside from the 7-foot-1 Diop, they have a pair of 6-foot-11 forwards in the lineup, sophomore Santiago Trouet and junior Andrija Grbovic.

Although the Sun Devils’ big men might not be as talented as Arizona’s, it will be interesting to see if Arizona State tries to emulate or utilize a similar gameplan defensively as Arizona. The Sun Devils are a good shot-blocking team and they’ll look to use their size up front to make life in the paint difficult for Iowa State.

Despite Arizona State’s size, the Sun Devils are not an exceptional rebounding team, so this can be an opportunity for Iowa State bigs to set the tone on the boards.

Iowa State basketball coach TJ Otzelberger on emotions of senior night

Iowa State basketball coach TJ Otzelberger on the emotions of senior night from a coach’s perspective.

Iowa State will salute its seniors

The Cyclones are set to honor five seniors on Saturday afternoon: Tamin Lipsey, Joshua Jefferson, Nate Heise, Eric Mulder and Dominick Nelson.

Lipsey, a hometown hero and Ames product, will be playing in his final game at Hilton Coliseum. A senior who has been at Iowa State since the first day of his collegiate career, Lipsey is a rarity in this era of the revamped transfer portal and NIL. He is one of only five seniors in the Big 12 to stay all four, or five (if they redshirted), years at the same school.

Jefferson also will get recognition. In just two years at Iowa State, he quickly blossomed into one of the Cyclones’ top players and fan-favorites after transferring in from Saint Mary’s.

Nate Heise, a sixth-year senior, was already honored in last season’s senior-night ceremonies, but he will be recognized once again on Saturday. Heise chose to return this season for another year due to a season of eligibility stemming from a medical redshirt from a hand injury in the 2022-23 season at Northern Iowa.

Nelson and Mulder, both graduate transfers, will cap senior-day ceremonies.

Iowa State basketball vs. Arizona State prediction

The quest for perfection at home is no longer possible, but expect Iowa State to be able to give Tamin Lipsey and the other seniors the perfect sendoff in the final game at Hilton Coliseum. Although the Sun Devils recently enjoyed a big win, they’ve struggled on the road this year, with a 2-8 record. One last dose of Hilton Magic as Iowa State gets back on the winning side after a two-game losing skid. Prediction: Iowa State 80, Arizona State 64

Eugene Rapay covers Iowa State athletics for the Des Moines Register. Contact Eugene at erapay@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @erapay5.

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Iowa

No. 3 Michigan holds off a late run by Iowa, beats the Hawkeyes 71-68

Published

22 hours ago

March 6, 2026

Press Room

No. 3 Michigan holds off a late run by Iowa, beats the Hawkeyes 71-68

IOWA CITY, Iowa — IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Morez Johnson Jr. and Yaxel Lendeborg scored 16 points apiece, and Aday Mara had two tiebreaking shots in the final 1:22 as No. 3 Michigan defeated Iowa 71-68 on Thursday night.

The Wolverines (28-2, 18-1 Big Ten) were held 18 points below their season scoring average, but managed to hold off the Hawkeyes (20-10, 10-9) in the closing seconds.

Iowa went on an 11-1 run to tie the game at 64 with 1:56 to play before Mara banked in a shot before the shot clock expired, putting Michigan in front again. After Iowa’s Cam Manyawu scored inside to tie the game at 66, Mara, who finished with 14 points on 7-for-10 shooting, scored off a lob with 43 seconds left to put the Wolverines ahead to stay.

Iowa had chances to tie the game on back-to-back possessions, but missed three shots on one of the possessions and lost the ball on another after a turnover by Tavion Banks with seven seconds left.

The Hawkeyes had a final chance to tie the game after Lendeborg made two free throws with four seconds remaining, but Bennett Stirtz’s 3-pointer try was long.

Elliot Cadeau added 11 points for the Wolverines, the Big Ten regular-season champions.

Stirtz led Iowa with 21 points. Manyawu had 14.

Michigan had a 38-25 rebounding edge on the Hawkeyes.

The game was tied at 30 at halftime. Michigan shot 50% from the field, but committed 12 turnovers that Iowa turned into 16 points.

The Hawkeyes were 11 of 31 from the field, with Stirtz especially struggling to make shots. Stirtz, Iowa’s leading scorer this season, made just one of his first nine shots, then hit back-to-back 3-pointers in a 27-second span to give Iowa a 30-28 lead.

Up next

Michigan: Hosts No. 8 Michigan State on Sunday.

Iowa: At No. 9 Nebraska on Sunday.

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Iowa

Iowa women’s wrestling star Kylie Welker on competing for official NCAA championship

Published

1 day ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Iowa women’s wrestling star Kylie Welker on competing for official NCAA championship

Wrestling-Women

March 5, 2026

Iowa women’s wrestling star Kylie Welker on competing for official NCAA championship

March 5, 2026

Kylie Welker chats with NCAA Digital’s Sophie Starkey about the success of Iowa women’s wrestling and the possibility of winning the inaugural NCAA sanctioned championship.

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