Iowa
Teachers who carry guns would have qualified immunity under a bill that cleared the Iowa Senate
A bill that would make it easier for teachers and other school employees to carry firearms is headed back to the House after passing out of the Iowa Senate Wednesday.
Schools can already authorize employees to carry weapons under current state law, but when a few districts — including Spirit Lake and Cherokee — tried to enact policies creating armed security teams they were told by their insurer that they would lose coverage.
Republican supporters said their bill (HF 2586) is meant to make it easier for districts to follow through on their plans and find affordable insurance if they choose to arm staff members, but opponents said it raises the question of who would be responsible if something goes wrong.
The bill creates a professional permit for armed school workers. It would require them to go through multiple rounds of training that would cover everything from emergency medicine to communication with law enforcement and simulated shooting scenarios.
A teacher or school worker who completes the training would be granted qualified immunity from criminal or civil liability in any situation where they use “reasonable force” at their school. The district would also be covered by qualified immunity.
GOP lawmakers believe that change will make the districts insurable, but Democrats said protection from liability would not be needed unless there was a risk that a gun could be mishandled or that an armed teacher may accidentally harm an innocent person.
“It’s an acknowledgement that that’s the expected outcome, that this will be the likely result of having untrained, unskilled, very likely unqualified people with loaded weapons in our schools,” said Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, D-West Des Moines. “The authors of this bill understand we are putting Iowa children, teachers, school staff at risk of injury or even death.”
Republican lawmakers said the greater risk is waiting additional minutes for law enforcement to respond to an active school shooting when armed staff may have the chance to intervene sooner. Sen. Julian Garrett, R-Indianola, said he believes having the chance to stop a shooter is worth the risk of an accident.
“We’re better off taking that tiny little risk than we are taking the big risk of having nobody there to protect our children if that need arises,” Garrett said.
The bill is part of GOP lawmakers’ response to the Perry High School shooting in January which resulted in the death of principal Dan Marburger, sixth grade student Ahmir Jolliff and the 17-year-old gunman.
A separate bill passed in the House would create a grant program to help schools pay for firearms and training.
Gun control advocates condemned the legislature’s plans to clear the way for schools to arm teachers. The group Everytown for Gun Safety called on lawmakers to restrict overall access to guns instead of helping put guns in schools.
“Guns are turning our schools into graveyards, and yet, Iowa lawmakers are hell-bent on arming our teachers as a response. It literally defies all common sense,” Chloe Gayer, a volunteer leader with the Drake University chapter of Students Demand Action, said in a statement.
The bill includes a requirement for school districts with more than 8,000 students to have at least one school resource officer or private security officer present at each location that enrolls students in 9th through 12th grade. School boards would be able to opt out of that requirement, however.
The proposal passed on a vote of 30-14 and is headed back to the House after it was amended to remove a grant program to help schools pay for security officers.
CONESVILLE, Iowa (KCRG) – A former Conesville city clerk has pleaded guilty to theft and financial crimes after a state audit found nearly $66,000 in improper payments she allegedly made to herself and her family.
Yamira Martinez, of Columbus Junction, pleaded guilty to ongoing criminal conduct, unauthorized use of a credit card over $10,000, and first-degree theft. A forgery charge will be dismissed under the plea agreement.
Martinez served as Conesville’s city clerk from June 2022 through March 2024. Officials in Conesville requested an audit from State Auditor Rob Sand, which covered the period of July 1, 2022, through April 30, 2024.
Sand’s audit found nearly $66,000 in improper payments, more than $53,000 in uncollected and undeposited utility billings, and more than $7,500 in unsupported payments.
“Miss Martinez was interviewed about this. She stated that the 24 checks that were unauthorized payroll and were made to appear like payroll checks, she admitted, were unauthorized. She also stated that the checks were for her kids. When she was asked about personal Amazon purchases, she stated that that was her fault,” Sand said.
The nearly $66,000 in improper payments includes more than $45,000 in payroll and reimbursements paid to Martinez, as well as nearly $12,500 in purchases made using the city’s debit card.
According to Sand’s office, it is unknown whether additional utility transactions were improperly recorded or if there were additional improper payments, as city records were not well-maintained.
Martinez was originally charged with two counts of ongoing criminal conduct, two counts of theft, and two counts related to forgery and fraud.
Martinez is scheduled to be sentenced July 10 at the Muscatine County Courthouse.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
After a spectacular senior year with Iowa basketball, point guard Bennett Stirtz won Iowa Athletics’ men’s Athlete of the Year and men’s Hawkeye of the Year awards at the athletic department’s 10th annual Golden Herky awards ceremony.
Stirtz, who made stops at Northwest Missouri State and Drake before his lone season at Iowa, finished with a career Division I average of 19.5 points, 5.0 assists, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game on 48.7% field goal shooting, 37.2% 3-point shooting, and 82% from the free-throw line.
This past season, the 6-foot-4, 190-pounder from Liberty, Missouri, averaged 19.8 points and 4.4 assists per game on 47.7% field goal shooting and 35.8% 3-point shooting, to accompany 4.4 assists, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.4 steals through approximately 37:44 of action in his 37 games played.
At the end of the season, Stirtz’s play earned him AP and USBWA honorable-mention All-America honors, first-team All-Big Ten recognition, and the winner of the prestigious Chris Street Award.
In addition to Stirtz’s men’s Athlete of the Year award, Iowa’s men’s basketball team took home four additional Golden Herkys.
Redshirt freshman Cooper Koch was named men’s Breakthrough Athlete, freshman Tate Sage was named men’s Freshman of the Year, and the team earned the awards for men’s Outstanding Team and Best Moment for defeating No. 1 seed Florida to advance to the Sweet 16 in the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
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CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – A University of Iowa student critically injured in an April 19 shooting at the Pedestrian Mall is off a ventilator after multiple surgeries.
Miranda, who suffered the most serious injuries in the shooting, was taken off a ventilator and breathing through her tracheostomy with oxygen support as needed, according to a May 2 update on a GoFundMe page organized by her sister, Janjay Peters. The fundraiser has raised more than $195,000.
Doctors said if Miranda continues to do well with her breathing, she may be moved out of the ICU soon. The family expressed appreciation for the support they have been receiving.
The shooting happened at the Pedestrian Mall in Iowa City, around 1:45 a.m. on April 19. Five people were hurt, one critically.
Iowa City Police said 17-year-old Damarian Jones of Cedar Rapids was involved in a fight before he retrieved a gun from another person and fired six shots into the crowd, hitting five people.
Authorities said there is no evidence Jones targeted any of the victims, and none were involved in the initial fight.
Iowa City Police are still searching for Jones. He is facing five counts of attempted murder among several other charges.
The Iowa City Police Department said it expects to arrest more people in addition to the charges for Jones.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
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