KDXU Up To The Minute News

Investigation Into Homicide in Salt Lake City

Salt Lake City police say they plan to carefully investigate a homicide that happened on Wenco Drive.  Salt Lake City Police Detective Jess Perea says rain was complicating efforts to investigate the shooting death of 41-year-old Gerad Ohlwiler yesterday. Ohlwiler was found dead early yesterday after police responded to a call about shots being fired near 1600 South and 1000 West.

Six Year Old Recovering After Being Dragged by School Bus

A six-year-old girl is recovering from her injuries after she was dragged behind a school bus Monday afternoon.  The Wasatch County School District bus was dropping off students at the Potter Lane intersection with Highway 40, northwest of Heber City.  The girl got off the bus, but her backpack was still connected to the tire.  When the driver started moving, the girl was dragged 10 or 15 feet before the bus stopped again. Authorities say the girl was treated for scrapes and bruises, and she'll be okay.

Hearing Scheduled on Abortion Law

A hearing involving Utah's new law banning abortion after 18 weeks of pregnancy is scheduled for federal court on Thursday.  Planned Parenthood of Utah filed a lawsuit last week, arguing the new law is unconstitutional because no fetus is viable at 18 weeks.  The group seeks to block the law from taking effect on May 14th while the case proceeds through the court.  Thursday's hearing will be a status conference where the judge will lay out a schedule for the case to proceed.

Salt Lake National Leader in Solar Power

Salt Lake City is becoming a national leader in solar power.  According to the Environment America Research and Policy Center, Salt Lake City is now ranked 11th in the country when it comes to solar energy capacity.   Authors of the report point to the city's rapid adoption of solar energy.  Salt Lake City is one of 23 cities ranked as a solar star for its amount of solar power use per person.

Confirmed Measles and Mumps

The Southern Nevada Health District has reported two confirmed cases of measles in Clark County in the last six months. Those are among the 465 cases of measles across 19 states reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention so far this year. That is the second-highest number of cases reported in the United States since measles was eliminated.

Trip From Salt Lake to Vegas $5.00

A trip to Las Vegas from Salt Lake City may only cost your five bucks.  A European company called FlixBus is now offering tickets for that cheap fare as it launches its service on Friday.  The route also includes stops in Provo, Cedar City and St. George along the way, as well as other connecting routes to California and Arizona.  FlixBus will offer the discounted fare until May 3rd when the price will go up to 15 or 20 dollars, depending on the day and demand.

Police Chase in Davis County

A convicted felon is in custody in Davis County on numerous charges for allegedly leading police on a high-speed chase yesterday morning while armed with a shotgun.  According to arrest records, officers attempted to pull 28-year-old Thomas Rudolph over in West Point for driving with a shattered windshield when he bolted.  Rudolph reached speeds of 90 miles per hour during the chase before officers in Clearfield used spike strips to blow out his tires and disable his car.  Police believe the car the suspect was driving was stolen.

Remains Found Believed to be Missing Woman

The Utah County Sheriff's Office believes human remains found in American Fork Canyon may belong to a woman missing for more than a year.  Utah County Sheriff's Sergeant Spencer Cannon says an elderly hiker found the remains Sunday.  Jerika Binks disappeared more than a year ago after telling her roommate at a Utah County treatment center that she was going for a run.  The Sheriff's Office does not suspect foul play.

Voter Fraud Investigation in Colorado City

Mohave county has approved an investigation to determine if voter fraud occurred during last year's election where a polygamous sect kept control of a town council in Colorado City on the Arizona-Utah border The Mohave County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Monday to spend $8,000 to allow a private investigator to look into allegations that people voted using addresses where they no longer live in Colorado City. County attorney Matt Smith requested the funds to probe allegations that he says seem credible.

Delta Man Charged with Murder

One man is dead and another man charged with murder. Millard County deputies responded to 98 West 100 North in Delta when a man called 911 and reported he had shot his brother. When deputies arrived, they found 76 year old Frank Wynn Bringard, dead with a gunshot wound. 63 year old John Peck who was the only other person at the home when deputies arrived, was taken into custody.  According to a probable cause statement, Peck told investigators he had gotten into an argument with his brother about titles to the property and he shot him.

Presidential Candidate Says She Will Restore National Monuments

Democratic Senator and presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren says she will restore the original boundaries to the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante national monuments if elected.  In a post on Medium.com, Warren pledges to sign an executive order on her first day in office that would put a moratorium on new fossil fuel leases, including those for offshore oil and for public lands.  This all comes as the senator is set to appear at The Depot in Salt Lake City on Wednesday night.

Medicaid Expansion will Reduce Abortion

Recently-approved Medicaid expansion and a new reproductive health initiative in Utah could greatly reduce the number of abortions in the state.  The report states that the Medicaid expansion alone will help provide birth control coverage for more than eleven-thousand women who did not have access to family planning services before.  An initiative from the University of Utah School of Medicine would then help women above the federal poverty line not covered by Medicaid get better access to contraception as well.