July 2021 Archive | Court of Appeals Court Opinions

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Hardin County, John J. Haney, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Doyle, P.J., and Mullins and May, JJ.  Opinion by Doyle, P.J.  (4 pages)

            Triston Phillips appeals his convictions of sexual abuse claiming there was insufficient evidence to convict him and his counsel provided ineffective assistance.  OPINION HOLDS: Phillips’s motion for judgment of acquittal did not preserve error for the argument he now raises on appeal.  Furthermore, we cannot review Phillips’s ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims on direct appeal.  So we affirm his convictions and reserve his ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims for a possible post-conviction relief proceeding.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Samantha J. Gronewald, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Mullins, P.J., Greer, J., and Potterfield, S.J.  Opinion by Potterfield, S.J.  (5 pages)

            Raymond Thomas’s third application for postconviction relief (PCR)—filed more than eleven years after procedendo issued on his direct appeal—was dismissed as time-barred.  Thomas argues an exception to the statute of limitations saves his application so the district court was wrong to dismiss.  OPINION HOLDS: Because Thomas has not established an exception to the statute of limitations to save his third PCR application, we affirm the district court’s dismissal. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, Joel Dalrymple, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Doyle, P.J., and Mullins and May, JJ.  Opinion by Doyle, P.J.  (5 pages)

            Johnny Patterson appeals his conviction for third-degree sexual abuse.  Patterson proffers two arguments on appeal.  OPINION HOLDS: Because sufficient evidence supports Patterson’s conviction and the district court acted within its discretion in denying Patterson’s motion for new trial, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, Mitchell E. Turner, Judge.  REVERSED AND REMANDED.  Heard by May, P.J., and Greer and Schumacher, JJ.  Opinion by May, P.J.  Special Concurrence and Partial Dissent by Schumacher, J.  (32 pages)

            Robert Hutchinson appeals the modification of the parties’ dissolution decree based upon his alleged extrinsic fraud.  OPINION HOLDS: Susan Hutchinson has not shown that reasonable diligence would not have permitted her to discover Robert’s fraud within one year after entry of the decree.  Accordingly, Susan is not entitled to recover in this proceeding.  PARTIAL DISSENT AND SPECIAL CONCURRENCE ASSERTS: As Robert committed extrinsic fraud that could not be discovered with due diligence within one year of the decree, the district court should be affirmed in part.  The requirement for Robert to pay a portion of the property settlement from a pension acquired after the marriage should be modified.  Further, appellate attorney fees for Susan are appropriate, with a remand required on the issue of sanctions for development of the record and for consideration of Robert’s request for attorney fees on the dismissed count of Susan’s petition.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Cass County, Jeffrey L. Larson, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Ahlers, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, J. (11 pages)         

            Joshua Chapalonis appeals his seven convictions for sexual abuse in the second degree.  He argues the district court improperly allowed the jury to hear privileged communications he made to his substance-abuse counselor.  He also challenges the admission of expert testimony concerning the delayed disclosure of children in sex abuse cases.  OPINION HOLDS: Because any confidential communications were admissible under the privilege exception in Iowa Code section 232.74 (2020) and the district court did not abuse its discretion in allowing the forensic interviewer to testify about the delayed disclosure, we decline to grant a new trial.  Thus, we affirm the convictions. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Greene County, Gina Badding, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Mullins, P.J., and May, J. and Potterfield, S.J.  Opinion by Mullins, P.J.  (5 pages)

            Tyson Ruth appeals the denial of his application for postconviction relief (PCR).  He argues the district court erred in denying his claims that his criminal counsel was ineffective in (1) allowing him to enter a plea that was coerced and not voluntary and (2) not filing a motion to suppress on the basis he was denied his constitutional right to a neutral and detached magistrate issuing search warrants.  OPINION HOLDS: We affirm the denial of Ruth’s PCR application.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Webster County, Kurt J. Stoebe, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Heard by Bower, C.J., Tabor and Schumacher, JJ., and Carr and Gamble, S.J.  Opinion by Tabor, J.  (18 pages)

            Tanner King appeals his two convictions for murder in the first degree challenging the district court’s ruling that testimony of a local barber who shared second-hand information about an alternative suspect with a police detective was inadmissible hearsay.  King contends this decision deprived him of his due process right to present a defense.  OPINION HOLDS: The district court correctly determined that the proffered evidence is hearsay.  Because it was inadmissible, King had no due process right to present the testimony.  We affirm the convictions. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Mary E. Howes, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Greer and Schumacher, JJ.  Opinion by Schumacher, J.  (6 pages).

          Chad Enderle appeals the district court order dismissing his application for postconviction relief.  OPINION HOLDS: We affirm the dismissal of the untimely application.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Jasper County, Brad Mccall, Judge.  AFFIRMED ON BOTH APPEALS.  Heard by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Ahlers, JJ.  Opinion by Bower, C.J.  (21 pages)

            On January 16, 2018, the district court entered summary judgment for plaintiffs Poweshiek Township and Jasper County (collectively “the Township”) on their claim of adverse possession and quieted title to Sams Cemetery.  The district court entered summary judgment for the Township on its claim for an access easement to Sams Cemetery, whether by prescription or necessity.  After a trial on remaining issues, the court determined the boundary lines of Sams Cemetery and the width and direction of the access easement.  The defendants appeal, asserting genuine issues of material fact precluded the summary judgment rulings.  The plaintiffs cross-appeal the court’s establishing the width of the access easement at sixteen feet rather than twenty feet.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the Township acquired title to Sams Cemetery by adverse possession at latest by 1995, the court did not err in granting summary judgment on the Township’s quiet title action and its claim for an access easement to the cemetery.  We discern no reason to disturb the court’s findings and conclusions as to the boundaries of the cemetery or the width and description of the access easement.  Therefore, we affirm on both appeals.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Mahaska County, Crystal S. Cronk, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Ahlers, JJ.  Opinion by Bower, C.J.  (3 pages)

            Aaron Sams appeals the denial of his application for postconviction relief, asserting trial and postconviction counsel were ineffective.  OPINION HOLDS: Sams has failed to prove trial counsel was ineffective, and we do not address the claim postconviction counsel was ineffective because the record is inadequate.  We affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Des Moines County, Wyatt Peterson, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Ahlers, JJ.  Opinion by Ahlers, J.  (4 pages)

            Dakota Poland appeals the dismissal of his application for postconviction relief.  OPINION HOLDS: Poland’s constitutional claims were not properly preserved for appellate review, and accordingly dismissal of his application for postconviction relief is affirmed.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Hardin County, Angela L. Doyle, Judge.  CONVICTION AFFIRMED; SENTENCE VACATED AND REMANDED FOR NEW SENTENCING HEARING.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J. and Greer and Schumacher, JJ.  Opinion by Vaitheswaran, P.J. (6 pages)

            Joseph Cruz Cordero appeals following his convictions for distributing a controlled substance (marijuana) to a minor within 1000 feet of a public park and third-degree sexual abuse.  OPINION HOLDS: We conclude Cruz’s waiver of an in-person hearing was not knowing, intelligent, and voluntary, and the waiver was invalid.  We vacate the sentences imposed on Cruz’s convictions and remand the matter for a new sentencing hearing.