Iowa Headlines

The Des Moines Register
Iowa
Headlines

Gang Communication Goes Wall To Wall

Police expect 2006 to be a record year for graffiti.
Detectives say street gangs use graffiti to establish an identity, challenge rivals, bolster egos, memorialize dead members, define territorial boundaries and celebrate violence. The Des Moines police are working to develop booklets for residents to educate them and their neighborhood groups on how to spot and interpret gang graffiti.

PAC: Money not linked to restoring TouchPlay

Owners of the TouchPlay lottery machines have vowed to make the gambling game an issue in the Nov. 7 election. They have raised about $77,000 since July from their political action committee that they formed, named Revenues for Main Street Iowa. They have contributed about $54,000 primarily to Democratic legislative candidates.

‘Laramie’ hype slams Valley, skips Kennedy

A Cedar Rapids high school escaped criticism for “The Laramie Project”. Valley High School administrators are braced for protests of the sanitized version of their fall play next week. “The Laramie Project” is a collection of interviews about the 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, who was tied to a fence post and left to die on the outskirts of Laramie, Wyo.