2019 Archive | Court of Appeals Court Opinions

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Ida County, Patrick H. Tott, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Potterfield, P.J., and Doyle and Tabor, JJ.  Opinion by Potterfield, P.J.  (5 pages)

            The mother appeals the termination of her parental rights to her five children.  The mother does not challenge the statutory grounds for termination.  She focuses on her argument on a permissive factor of Iowa Code section 232.116(3) (2018), claiming the court need not terminate her parental rights because each of the five children is in the custody of their respective father.  OPINION HOLDS: These children have been involved with the juvenile court system for much of their lives.  Leaving the door open for additional uncertainty in their lives is not in their best interests.  We affirm the termination of the mother’s parental rights. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Stuart P. Werling, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vogel, C.J., and Vaitheswaran and Potterfield, JJ.  Opinion by Vogel, C.J.  (6 pages)

            Paul Cannon appeals the denial of his application for postconviction relief (PCR).  He argues his PCR counsel was ineffective for failing to obtain an expert opinion on his competency and for failing to challenge the procedure used during the competency determination.  OPINION HOLDS: We find his PCR counsel did not commit structural error and the procedure during the competency determination complied with due process.  Therefore, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Warren County, Kevin Parker, District Associate Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., Doyle, J., and Carr, S.J.  Opinion by Carr, S.J.  (6 pages)

            Mackinzie Standlee-Campbell appeals her conviction for domestic abuse assault causing bodily injury.  She asserts the district court violated her constitutional right to present a defense when it excluded evidence of the victim’s prior bad acts and her conviction is not supported by sufficient evidence.  OPINION HOLDS: Standlee-Campbell did not preserve her argument about her right to present a defense for our review, and even if we were to consider the issue, she cannot show the probative value of the evidence substantially outweighs the danger of unfair prejudice.  Also, the evidence is sufficient for the jury to reject her self-defense claim and find she committed domestic abuse assault causing bodily injury.  Therefore, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Boone County, Paul G. Crawford, District Associate Judge.  REVERSED AND REMANDED.  Considered by Vogel, C.J., and Vaitheswaran and Doyle, JJ.  Opinion by Vaitheswaran, J.  (10 pages)

            Clay Thomas Paulson appeals from a jury trial finding him guilty as charged of suborning perjury and solicitation to suborn perjury.  He raises claims of insufficiency of the evidence and improper admission of hearsay.  OPINION HOLDS: We conclude substantial evidence supported the elements of both crimes.  However, we conclude the woman’s statement as recounted by the police officer was offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted and, accordingly, was hearsay.  We conclude the State failed to prove the woman’s statement to the police officer concerning Paulson’s possession of a starred backpack was admissible under the forfeiture-by-wrongdoing exception to the hearsay rule.  Because the evidence was inadmissible, we reverse and remand for a new trial.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Tama County, Mary E. Chicchelly, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., Bower, J., and Blane, S.J.  Opinion by Blane, S.J.  (15 pages)

            Defendant appeals from his convictions for two counts of indecent contact with a child and three counts of assault with intent to commit sexual abuse.  He contends the jury verdicts are not supported by sufficient evidence and the district court erred in not granting him a new trial based on his weight-of-the-evidence and evidentiary claims.  Finally, he contends his trial counsel was ineffective.  OPINION HOLDS:  We find Olson failed to preserve his sufficiency-of-the-evidence argument.  The district court did not abuse its discretion in denying his motion for new trial as the verdict was not against the weight-of-the-evidence.  The court did not abuse its discretion in any preserved evidentiary ruling.  And the ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims are preserved for postconviction-relief proceedings. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Floyd County, Christopher C. Foy, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Mullins and Bower, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, P.J.  (10 pages)

            Daniel Connerley appeals his convictions for third-degree theft and ongoing criminal conduct, arguing the court erred in modifying the jury verdict form to remove an offense greater than the offense charged by the State after the jury returned a verdict finding Connerley guilty of the greater charge.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding no error in the court’s modification of the verdict form, we affirm Connerley’s convictions.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, George L. Stigler, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., Mullins, J., and Carr, S.J.  Opinion by Carr, S.J. (3 pages)

            Maliek Todd-Harris appeals his conviction for second-degree burglary.  OPINION HOLDS: The district court acted within its discretion in denying Todd-Harris’s motion for mistrial based on juror misconduct.  He failed to preserve his claim the trial court should be required to conduct an investigation into how much of the trial the juror had missed. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Mills County, Mark J. Eveloff, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Potterfield, P.J., and Tabor and Bower, JJ.  Opinion by Potterfield, P.J.  (17 pages)

            David Nuno appeals his conviction and sentence for second-degree sexual abuse.  He argues his right to confront his witnesses was violated, his motion for new trial was incorrectly decided using the wrong standard, and his trial counsel was ineffective several reasons.  OPINION HOLDS: Nuno was not denied the right to confront witnesses, and the district court did not apply the incorrect standard in denying Nuno’s motion for new trial.  We preserve Nuno’s claims of ineffective assistance of counsel for possible postconviction-relief proceedings. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Arthur E. Gamble, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Potterfield, P.J., Doyle, J., and Mahan, S.J.  Gamble, S.J., takes no part.  Opinion by Potterfield, P.J.  (5 pages)

            Bryon Jones challenges the district court’s award of punitive damages and attorney fees.  He argues the district court (1) violated his right to due process when it adopted the proposed findings of Papillon on remand and (2) erred when it ordered him to pay trial attorney and appellate attorney fees without having evidence of either party’s finances.  OPINION HOLDS: Jones’s complaint regarding his due process rights involves a previous order by the district court—not the final order before us now.  He has not established a due process violation regarding the final order.  Additionally, he provides no authority to support his claim the court is required to consider or make a determination as to either party’s need or ability to pay before ordering the payment of fees pursuant to Iowa Code section 808B.8 (2015).  We affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Union County, John D. Lloyd, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vogel, C.J., and Vaitheswaran and Doyle, JJ.  Opinion by Vaitheswaran, J.  (3 pages)

            Michael Fry appeals his judgment and sentence for possession of methamphetamine, third or subsequent offense, as a habitual felon.  He contends, “[T]he trial court erred by failing to consider [his] request for new counsel, violating his Sixth Amendment Right to counsel.”  OPINION HOLDS: The record is inadequate to resolve Fry’s claim that he was entitled to substitute counsel either based on a breakdown in the attorney-client relationship or because of a conflict of interest, as he alleges.  Accordingly, we affirm his judgment and sentence and preserve his claim for possible postconviction relief.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Des Moines County, John G. Linn, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Potterfield, P.J., and Tabor and Bower, JJ.  Opinion by Bower, J. (11 pages)

            Earl Booth-Harris appeals his conviction for murder in the first degree.  OPINION HOLDS: We find the district court properly denied Booth-Harris’s motion to suppress based on a claim of an impermissible suggestive identification procedure.  We preserve for a possible postconviction relief action defendant’s due process claim raised under the Iowa Constitution and his claim defense counsel should have requested a different eyewitness identification instruction.  We affirm Booth-Harris’s conviction for first-degree murder

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Mark J. Smith, Judge.  AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND REMANDED.  Heard by Vogel, C.J., Vaitheswaran, J., and Danilson, S.J.  Opinion by Vaitheswaran, J.  (10 pages)

            The district court ruled in favor of a condominium association and ordered a condominium owner to return units it modified to their original condition.  The court declined to grant the association’s request for attorney fees.  The owner and the association appeal.  OPINION HOLDS: We affirm all aspects of the district court’s final order except the grant of injunctive relief.  We reverse that portion of the final order and remand for entry of judgment in favor of the Association for $5095.48 plus interest.