Midwest

Search for missing news anchor expands after authorities get new tip

Published

1 year ago

November 11, 2024

Press Room

Search for missing news anchor expands after authorities get new tip

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A 27-year-old news anchor mysteriously disappeared nearly 30 years ago, gripping the small town in Iowa where she worked, and a recent tip prompted detectives to search a property in Minnesota for her remains.

Mason City Police Department detectives in Iowa searched a site in Winsted, Minnesota, in October for Jodi Huisentruit, who vanished the morning of June 27, 1995.

Mason City Police Chief Jeff Brinkley confirmed the purpose of the search in a statement to Fox News Digital.

“MCPD recently worked with Minnesota law enforcement officials to follow up on a lead in Winsted,” he said. “MCPD continues to receive, evaluate and follow up on information it receives related to Jodi Huisentruit’s disappearance on a regular basis. Information gleaned from this effort will be used in the ongoing investigation. At this time, there is no additional information for public release. We do want to encourage anyone with information about Jodi’s disappearance to contact MCPD or the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.”

MISSING SUZANNE SIMPSON’S DAUGHTER SAYS FATHER ‘TOOK MY MOTHER’S LIFE’ AFTER REAL ESTATE AGENT’S DISAPPEARANCE

TV anchor Jodi Huisentruit went missing on her way to work the morning of June 27, 1995. (Findjodi.com)

Huisentruit, a native of Long Prairie, Minnesota, was on her way to work as a morning anchor at KIMT-TV in Mason City when she disappeared.

“She drove the red convertible, she had her hair flowing and she loved to be in public. She loved to be at, you know, the local establishment,” Sgt. Terrance Prochaska of the Mason City Police Department told Fox News Digital. “People knew Jodi because she was just approachable.”

On the morning of her disappearance, Huisentruit told a colleague she had overslept and was running late to the office, according to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. However, she never made it to work that day.

“She was in a hurry … probably wasn’t even looking when she was getting into her car,” Prochaska, who has been investigating Huisentruit’s case for 14 years, said. “I’ve been a police officer for 23 years now. I’ve been around the circle, I guess, of cases. This one is just heartbreaking.”

COP WHO SURVIVED SERIAL KILLER AS A TEEN IS NOW ON TRACK TO BECOME A DETECTIVE

The exterior of the apartment complex where TV anchor Jodi Huisentruit lived June 27, 1995. (Steve Kagan/The Life Images Collection via Getty Images/Getty Images)

“It’s sometimes hard to go home at night with, you know, without answers for the family of Jodi Huisentruit, especially her friends that are still actively looking for her that were with her day in, day out before she went missing.”

Huisentruit’s disappearance was ruled an abduction, and her belongings, including a hair dryer, a red pair of shoes and a bottle of hairspray, were found next to her car at her apartment complex, and police found signs of a struggle. A witness also reported seeing a suspicious white van and hearing a scream, Fox 9 reported.

“The red shoes are significant. It kind of makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck a little bit when you see those shoes … because it’s probably similar to something you’ve worn to work,” Prochaska said. “As far as the evidence left behind … there’s a significant amount of evidence that suggests that she was unconscious and dragged.”

MISSING GEORGIA MOM MINELYS RODRIGUEZ, A TIKTOKKER, FOUND DEAD NEAR WALMART WHERE SHE WAS LAST SEEN ALIVE

Jodi Huisentruit was a star TV anchor before she disappeared in 1995. (Findjodi.com)

The promising news anchor was declared legally dead in 2001.

“The biggest obstacle is we don’t have a body,” Prochaska acknowledged. “If you read about a lot of these cold cases that are being solved here recently, it’s because they have a body.”

“Remember that this happened in 1995 before DNA (evidence) really even existed. Thankfully, the investigators back then, they did things above and beyond. … They set up road blocks the next morning, and they interviewed every car passing by her apartment lot that next morning. They collected evidence out of dumpsters. Thankfully, that has helped us in the case.”

On the 28th anniversary of her disappearance in 2023, Huisentruit’s family posted a statement on Findjodi.com, encouraging anyone with information to come forward and expressing gratitude to the public and law enforcement.

“We, Jodi’s family, would like to say a big thank you to all of you who have shown up here today and who continue to show interest in Jodi’s case. We know that along with us, you feel the pain and agony over Jodi’s case still being unresolved,” the statement said.

“Jodi had such a bright future ahead of her, and she should be here every day enjoying it. She deserves better, and we continue to pray that someone will come forward with the missing piece that will finally solve this case and give Jodi the justice she deserves.”

MURDERED KANSAS MOMS’ CAUSE OF DEATH REVEALED MONTHS AFTER THEY TURNED UP DEAD IN COW PASTURE

A storefront window with a flyer about Jodie Huisentruit’s disappearance. (Steve Kagan/The Life Images Collection via Getty Images/Getty Images)

Prochaska explained that the latest tip to police was just one of many over the years and said investigators have searched extensively to find her remains. He did not disclose any information about who might be responsible for her disappearance.

“It’s very difficult to convince the public that we are trying so hard to find her,” he said. “The only thing we need is help from the public, that we hope that someday somebody is going to see something or hear something that’s going to make that one phone call to me or someone else in the community of law enforcement. … And that’s simply what we did in Minnesota recently, is just a person called us and gave us some information that was a little bit at a more concerning level than others.”

Prochaska did not provide any details about the “concerning” information police received, leading them to the search in Minnesota.

“That’s how we’re going to find Jodi,” he said. “By not giving up and not just taking people’s calls for granted.”

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Iowa

Iowa House OKs ‘3 strikes’ bill with 20-year prison terms. What to know

Published

2 seconds ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Iowans who commit multiple serious crimes would face a mandatory 20-year prison sentence under a “three strikes” bill passed by House lawmakers.
Republicans said the bill would keep Iowans safe and “prioritize victims and public safety over criminals.”
A nonpartisan state agency says the bill would disproportionately impact Black Iowans and could require the state to spend millions to build a new prison.

Repeat offenders convicted of multiple serious crimes would receive a mandatory 20-year prison sentence under a bill passed by House lawmakers.

House lawmakers debated for more than an hour about high costs, lack of prison space and the bill’s impact on Black Iowans before voting 68-23 to pass House File 2542, sending it to the Iowa Senate.

Seven Democrats, including Minority Leader Brian Meyer, D-Des Moines, joined Republicans in voting in favor of the bill.

“It will put public safety first,” said the bill’s floor manager, Rep. Steven Holt, R-Denison. “It will ensure that the debt to victims and society is paid. It will prioritize victims and public safety over criminals. It will establish real and effective deterrence that is nonexistent in our current system. It will reduce chaos and violence in our society.”

Here’s what to know about the bill.

What would the House Republican three strikes bill do?

Iowans who accumulate three strikes would face a mandatory 20-year prison sentence, with no parole, under the bill.

That would replace Iowa’s current law that says habitual offenders must serve a minimum three-year prison sentence before they are eligible for parole.

All felonies, as well as aggravated misdemeanors involving sexual abuse, domestic abuse, assault and organized retail theft would be considered level-one offenses that are worth one full strike.

Other aggravated misdemeanors, as well as serious misdemeanors involving assault, domestic abuse and criminal mischief would be considered level-two offenses worth half a strike each.

Lawmakers amended the bill to remove theft, harassment and possession of a controlled substance from the crimes that would count toward a person’s strikes.

And the amendment specifies that the bill would only apply to convictions that occur beginning July 1, 2026.

If someone is arrested and convicted of multiple offenses, only the most serious charge would count towards the defendant’s strikes.

Convictions would not count toward someone’s total if more than 20 years passes between a prior conviction and their current conviction.

Rep. Ross Wilburn, D-Ames, tried unsuccessfully to amend the bill to say that only a violent crime would qualify as someone’s third strike, but Republicans rejected the amendment.

“The bill still scores murder, felony embezzlement and felony theft the same, even though they are very different crimes,” Wilburn said. “One point is one point and three gets you 20 years with no ability for parole or judicial discretion.”

Holt said the legislation leaves room for judicial and prosecutorial discretion.

“There are deferred sentences, there are plea bargains,” he said. “There is plenty of opportunity for grace and judicial discretion in the legislation that we are proposing.”

Bill could cost millions, require Iowa to build a new prison, agency says

A fiscal analysis of the bill by the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency said it could cost Iowa nearly $165 million more per year by 2031 based on the cost of housing inmates for longer prison stays.

FY 2027: $33 million
FY 2028: $66 million
FY 2029: $99 million
FY 2030: $132 million
FY 2031: $164.9 million

The agency said if the bill had been in effect between fiscal year 2020 and fiscal year 2025, there would have been 5,373 people who qualified for the 20-year mandatory minimum sentence.

“An increase in the prison population due to increased (length of stay) will require the DOC to build additional prison(s),” the agency states. “The size, security and other features that a future prison may require cannot be determined, but costs would be significant.”

The analysis noted that South Dakota appropriated $650 million last fall to build a 1,500-bed prison.

As of March 1, the Iowa Department of Corrections’ website describes the state’s prison system as being overcrowded by 25%, with 8,705 inmates compared to a capacity of 6,990.

The Office of the State Public Defender could see a projected cost increase of $1.6 million due to an increased number of trials resulting from the legislation.

But the agency’s estimates come with a caveat — the Department of Corrections did not respond to its requests for data.

“The LSA has not received a response to multiple requests for information from the DOC,” the note states. “Without additional information, the LSA cannot estimate the total fiscal impact of the bill.”

Holt called the fiscal note “an embarrassment to the Department of Corrections” and “an agenda masquerading as math.”

“It is clear, in my judgment, that because they did not like the legislation they went all out and extreme to create a fiscal note that cannot be taken seriously in its assumptions,” he said. “It assumes that nothing will change, that there will be no deterrent factor and that the numbers will continue as usual.”

Black Iowans would be disproportionately impacted by the law

The Legislative Services Agency analysis says the bill “may disproportionately impact Black individuals if trends remain constant.”

Of the 29,438 people convicted in fiscal year 2025 of felonies and aggravated misdemeanors that constitute a level one offense under the bill, the agency said about 70% were White, 22% were Black and 9% were other races.

Iowa’s overall population is 83% White, 4% Black and 13% other races, the agency said.

It’s not clear how the bill’s impact would change to account for the House amendment removing some crimes from counting towards the three strikes.

“Expanding three-strike laws will intensify disparities — and that’s what this statement shows — by mandating longer sentences, limiting judicial discretion,” Wilburn said. “We already have a habitual offender statute. We already have one in place. We have a 10-year low in recidivism in our correctional system.”

Rep. Angel Ramirez, D-Cedar Rapids, said California’s three strikes law, passed in the 1990s, worsened racial disparities, and “Iowa is about to repeat the same mistake.”

“I urge every member here, do not pass legislation that our own minority impact statement tells us will deepen inequality in our state,” Ramirez said.

Holt said minority communities in Iowa are impacted by crime and that the legislation “will make citizens of all colors safer.”

And he said the minority impact statement “tells only one side of the story, doesn’t it? It tells the criminal’s story. What about the victim’s story?”

“What about the mother who will continue to tuck her kids in at night and read them Bible stories because she never became the next victim of a violent career criminal?” he said. “Where is that data point in the minority impact statement?”

House lawmakers also approved separate legislation that would increase Iowa’s statewide bond schedule, Senate File 2399.

That bill passed on a vote of 74-19.

Iowans could see more information on judges’ rulings

Iowans would have access to more information about judges’ rulings ahead of the state’s judicial retention elections under a separate measure, House File 2719, which passed on a 73-19 vote.

The Iowa secretary of state’s office would be required to publish information including:

The percentage of cases in which the judge set a bond amount lower than the state’s bond schedule
The frequency that the judge releases someone on their own recognizance for a violent offense compared to a nonviolent offense
The frequency that the judge’s final sentence is lower than statutory recommendations or a prosecutor’s recommendations
The number of times the judge issues a deferred judgement, deferred sentence or suspended sentence
The number of times the judge’s rulings are reversed on appeal due to abuse of discretion or error of law
The average time it takes the judge to rule on a motion or case
The number of cases the judge has resolved compared to the number of cases on the judge’s docket

The data would have to be displayed with a five-year trend line beginning five years after the bill takes effect.

The Secretary of State’s Office would also be required to maintain a searchable database of all judicial opinions and orders for the judge’s current term and the preceding six years. The decisions would be redacted when appropriate.

And judges would have the opportunity to write a 2,000-word personal statement on their judicial philosophy or data trends present in their rulings.

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 X at @sgrubermiller.

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Kansas

RESULTS: NE Kansas high schools to play Saturday after Wednesday sub-state wins

Published

6 minutes ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

RESULTS: NE Kansas high schools to play Saturday after Wednesday sub-state wins

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – Below is a look at the results from Wednesday night’s high school basketball sub-state semifinals in Northeast Kansas.

Editor’s Note: This story will be updated with what schools are hosting when that information becomes readily available.

WIBW Scoreboard

BOYS

6A Boys West Sub-State: Wednesday’s sub-state semifinal results

Topeka High 57, Washburn Rural 50 (will play Maize Saturday)
Junction City 70, Dodge City 56 (will play Derby Saturday)
Manhattan 58, Wichita-Northwest 56 (will play Wichita-East Saturday)

4A Boys East Sub-State: Wednesday’s sub-state semifinal results

Rock Creek 62, Louisberg 57 (will play Bishop Miege Saturday)
Atchison 74, Wamego 43
Hayden 72, Independence 56 (will play Atchison Saturday)
Eudora 76, Santa Fe Trail 68

GIRLS

5A West Girls: Wednesday’s sub-state semifinal results

Hays 80, Topeka West 18
Eisenhower 55, Seaman 41
Kapaun Mt. Carmel 71, Emporia 41

5A East Girls: Wednesday’s sub-state semifinal results

Shawnee Heights 89, Sumner 15 (will play Pittsburg Saturday)
Basehor-Linwood 74, Highland Park 28 (will play Piper Saturday)

3A Pomona-West Franklin Girls: Wednesday’s sub-state semifinal results

Osage City 75, Columbus 31 (will play Frontenac Saturday)

3A Sabetha Girls: Wednesday’s sub-state semifinal results

Silver Lake 48, Nemaha Central 26 (will play Riley County Saturday)
Riley County 51, Jeff West 40 (will play Silver Lake)

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Michigan

“Trustworthy” AI consortium focused on ethics, security launches in West Michigan

Published

36 minutes ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

“Trustworthy” AI consortium focused on ethics, security launches in West Michigan

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping everything from classroom conversations to social media, and leaders at Grand Valley State University (GVSU) say West Michigan is positioning itself to help determine how the technology is used, responsibly.

The university’s College of Computing is launching the West Michigan Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence (AI) Consortium, aimed at helping businesses, researchers and the community better understand how to use artificial intelligence.

Right in the heart of Grand Rapids, along the Medical Mile, the consortium will meet at the Daniel and Pamella DeVos Center for Interprofessional Health (DCIH) every week, with quarterly meetings open to the general public.

The effort is aimed at helping West Michigan industries adopt AI that fits their specific needs, while problem-solving for security, bias, privacy, and ethical concerns.

Right in the heart of Grand Rapids, along Medical Mile, the consortium will meet at the Daniel and Pamella DeVos Center for Interprofessional Health (DCIH) every week, with quarterly meetings open to the general public. (Abigail Taylor/WWMT)

Marouane Kessentini, Ph.D, Dean of the GVSU College of Computing told News Channel 3 that a wide range of companies in the region are bringing forward questions of where, and how, to ethically integrate artificial intelligence into their practices.

“Here in West Michigan, we have a high concentration of many industries, health, manufacturing, and of course high-tech companies,” said Kessentini. “The first questions are about security, privacy, ethics and bias. It’s not just about deploying tools. It’s about deploying them responsibly.”

Kessentini said the consortium will focus on training, research and community education, with a heavy emphasis on data privacy, cybersecurity and misinformation.

“There are many examples where AI systems were trained on data that wasn’t diverse,” he said. “That can lead to inaccurate results. That’s why testing and training are critical.”

The consortium will bring together faculty researchers, students, and industry leaders, with weekly meetings planned to develop guidance for using AI at scale.

The goal is to help companies validate AI outputs, clean and manage data, and identify bias before systems are put into real-world use, especially in high-risk industries like healthcare and manufacturing.

Some projects will involve software design, others will focus on creating public data sets that are reliably sourced, but anonymized for safe use, and many more are yet to be ideated.

Some projects will involve software design, others will focus on creating public data sets that are reliably sourced, but anonymized for safe use, and many more are yet to be ideated. (Abigail Taylor/WWMT)

The initiative is backed by $1,031,000 in federal support, through the Community Project Funding (CPF) process, resources that U.S. Representative Hillary Scholten (D-MI-03) said she advocated for among members of congress in Washington.

“West Michigan should be leading the way in how artificial intelligence is developed and used, and that starts with investing in people and institutions we trust,” said Rep. Scholten. “This funding will help GVSU bring together educators, industry, and public partners to build AI systems that are ethical, secure, and transparent while preparing students for good-paying jobs and strengthening our region’s economy. I’m proud to support this work and to continue delivering federal investments that ensure West Michigan remains at the forefront of responsible innovation.”

It’s important that AI is useful, but also safe…

GVSU also launched an online certificate portal that is open for community members interested in learning about ethical AI use, for free.

Kessentini said the training is for the general public to learn how to navigate the technology, including the risks and limitations.

“It’s important that AI is useful, but also safe,” said Edgar Cruz, master’s student with a badge in cybersecurity.

Cruz is currently researching how AI systems can be attacked or manipulated with poisoned data, specifically as it relates to vehicle-to-vehicle communication, where AI helps self-driving cars exchange information like speed and position.

“We want to ensure that the system is robust and safe,” he said. “Because obviously people are involved.”

Kessentini said the consortium is designed to be a public resource, not just an academic project.

Quarterly community meetings will be open to the public, and training materials are available online through the College of Computing website.

“This is innovation with purpose,” he said. “We want to start here in Grand Rapids, but we want to make a global impact.”

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