2023 Archive | Court of Appeals Court Opinions

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Susan Cox, District Associate Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Greer, P.J., and Schumacher and Badding, JJ.  Opinion by Greer, P.J.  (8 pages)

            A mother appeals the termination of her parental rights to her child, arguing the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services failed to make reasonable efforts to reunify her with the child, the statutory grounds for termination were not proved, the loss of her rights is not in the child’s best interests, and the court should have declined to terminate her parental rights because of the closeness of the bond she shares with D.W.  Alternatively, the mother asks for a six-month extension to work toward reunification.  OPINION HOLDS: We affirm the termination of the mother’s parental rights.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Christine Dalton and Cheryl Traum, District Associate Judges. AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Greer, JJ.  Buller, J., takes no part. Opinion by Bower, C.J.  Dissent by Tabor, J.  (11 pages)

            Paul Lee Cruz appeals his conviction for domestic abuse assault causing injury or mental illness, first offense, in violation of Iowa Code section 708.2A(2)(b) (2021).  Cruz asserts the district court erred in finding good cause to delay the trial past the speedy trial limit.  He also claims there is insufficient evidence to sustain the conviction.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding no abuse of discretion and that substantial evidence supports the conviction, we affirm.  DISSENT ASSERTS: I respectfully dissent from the majority as the State did not show good cause for the delay of Cruz’s bench trial. I disagree that the State can use a waiver as an excuse for not bringing Cruz to trial before a speedy deadline because the prosecutor consented to the jury waiver under Iowa Rule of Criminal Procedure 2.17(1).

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Scott J. Beattie and Jeanie Vaudt, Judges.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Greer, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, J.  (23 pages)

            Caine Dominguez-Schiesl appeals his convictions and sentence for two counts of attempted murder, intimidation with a dangerous weapon, and willful injury.  On appeal, he claims the district court abused its discretion in admitting video evidence and denying his motion for mistrial.  He also asserts the State provided insufficient evidence to support his four convictions.  And he argues his sentence violates constitutional prohibitions against cruel and unusual punishment.  OPINION HOLDS:  Because we find the district court acted reasonably and there is substantial evidence in the record to support Dominguez’s guilt, we affirm his conviction.  And after considering the mitigating and aggravating features of his case, we find his sentence constitutional and affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Marshall County, Bethany Currie, Judge.  AFFIRMED. Considered by Bower, C.J., and Ahlers and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Bower, C.J.  (17 pages)

            Mustafa Muhammad appeals his conviction for first degree murder, contending there is insufficient evidence of deliberation, premeditation, and lack of justification.  OPINION HOLDS:  Because there is substantial evidence from which the jury could reasonably find Muhammad acted deliberately, with premeditation, and without justification, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, Linda M. Fangman, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Tabor and Greer, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, J.  (7 pages)

            After a jury convicted Stephen Phillips of robbery in the first degree, a judge sentenced him to serve no more than twenty-five but at least seventeen and one-half years in prison.  Phillips appeals his sentence arguing (1) the State did not present sufficient evidence of his guilt and (2) the court abused its discretion by imposing the harshest mandatory minimum sentence allowed.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding substantial evidence of his guilt and no abuse of discretion in sentencing, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Jasper County, Thomas P. Murphy, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Ahlers, P.J., Badding, J., and Vogel, S.J.  Buller, J., takes no part.  Opinion by Vogel, S.J.  (12 pages)

            Dewayne Veverka appeals his conviction of third-degree sexual abuse, second offense.  He challenges the district court’s admission of a forensic interview and the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his conviction.  OPINION HOLDS: The forensic video was admissible under the residual exception to hearsay, and the video and testimony are sufficient evidence to support Veverka’s conviction.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Jefferson County, Shawn Showers, Judge.  AFFIRMED AS MODIFIED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Badding and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Badding, J.  (14 pages)

                Parties appeal and cross-appeal the economic provisions of the decree dissolving their marriage.  OPINION HOLDS: We modify the decree to remove the district court’s separate valuation of land upon which the marital home sits and order the husband to pay the wife the resulting equalization payment through a qualified domestic relations order from his retirement funds. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Des Moines County, Emily Dean, District Associate Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Greer, P.J., and Schumacher and Badding, JJ.  Opinion by Schumacher, J.  (7 pages)

            Kelvin Willform appeals his conviction for operating while intoxicated, first offense.  OPINION HOLDS: Willform’s claim of ineffective assistance of counsel cannot be addressed in a direct appeal, and we determine no abuse of discretion by the district court in the denial of his request for new counsel.  Accordingly, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, Paul D. Miller, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Ahlers, P.J., Badding, J., and Danilson, S.J.  Opinion by Danilson, S.J.  (8 pages)

            Jerome Power appeals the denial of his application for postconviction relief (PCR) following his conviction for first-degree murder.  Power contends his trial counsel was ineffective in failing to “investigate and present a defense based on the medical condition of his right hand,” and PCR counsel was ineffective in failing to advance his claim against trial counsel.  OPINION HOLDS: Upon our review, we affirm.   

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Jeanie K. Vaudt and David Nelmark, Judges.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Ahlers and Chicchelly, JJ.  Buller, J., takes no part.  Opinion by Bower, C.J.  (9 pages)

            Robin Inman appeals the district court’s denial of her application for funds for an expert witness and the denial of her application for postconviction relief.  OPINION HOLDS: We affirm both of the district court’s orders.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Marshall County, Kim M. Riley, District Associate Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., and Ahlers and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Ahlers, J.  (2 pages)

            Benjamin Kutzner appeals the sentence imposed in his criminal case.  He argues the district court abused its discretion by sentencing him to prison rather than suspending the sentence.  OPINION HOLDS: The district court properly exercised its discretion in sentencing Kutzner to prison.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Celene Gogerty, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Greer, P.J., and Schumacher and Badding, JJ.  Opinion by Greer, P.J.  (5 pages)

            Harold Lathrop appeals the dismissal of his application for postconviction relief, asserting that the Iowa Department of Corrections should have given him credit for time served for each separate charge in determining his tentative discharge date.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding no error in the PCR court’s findings of fact or application of the law, we affirm.