2023 Archive | Court of Appeals Court Opinions

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Clarke County, Stacy Ritchie, Judge.  REVERSED AND REMANDED FOR DISMISSAL.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Schumacher and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, P.J.  (9 pages)

            Bo Garland appeals his conviction for operating a motor vehicle without the owner’s consent.  He asserts the state did not provide substantial evidence of his guilt.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the State failed to show that Garland’s mother did not consent to him driving her car, we reverse Garland’s conviction and remand to dismiss the charge.

              Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Adair County, Thomas P. Murphy, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Heard by Tabor, P.J., and Schumacher and Ahlers, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, P.J.  (15 pages).

              Dustin Seley appeals his conviction for first-degree murder charge, claiming the State failed to offer sufficient evidence of his guilt considering his multiple defenses.  OPINION HOLDS:  Because the State offered substantial evidence of Seley’s guilt despite his multiple defenses, we affirm.

              Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Dubuque County, Michael Shubatt, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., Tabor, J., and Blane, S.J.  Opinion by Blane, S.J.  (8 pages)

              Kenneth Heim Jr. appeals his conviction for domestic abuse assault.  He contends the trial court erred in finding he procured the victim’s unavailability at trial and therefore forfeited any hearsay objections to her out-of-court statements.  He argues this violates his constitutional right to confrontation. OPINION HOLDS: Because we find he did procure the victim’s unavailability, we affirm the admissibility of the out-of-court statements.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, Sean W. McPartland, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Schumacher and Ahlers, JJ.  Opinion by Schumacher, J.  (6 pages)

            A defendant appeals his conviction, contending there is insufficient evidence to support a determination that he had specific intent to cause serious injury.  OPINION HOLDS: We determine there is sufficient evidence in the record to support the conviction and affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Samantha Gronewald, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Heard by Bower, C.J., and Badding and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Buller, J.  (7 pages)

            Trestle Corporation Limited (Trestle) seeks judicial review of a decision by the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals requiring Trestle’s game to be registered under Iowa’s gaming statute.  OPINION HOLDS: While the game at issue relies on a mix of chance and skill, chance dominates, so registration is required.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Scott D. Rosenberg, Judge.  AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND REMANDED.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Greer and Schumacher, JJ.  Opinion by Schumacher, J.  (9 pages)

            An employer and the workers’ compensation insurance carrier appeal the commissioner’s decision that awarded the claimant reimbursement for the cost of an independent medical examination (IME).  OPINION HOLDS:  We find the commissioner properly found the claimant was entitled to reimbursement for an IME.  But the award of $2020 for the IME was not reasonable under Iowa Code section 85.39(2) (2018).  We reverse the reimbursement award of $2020.00 and remand for the entry of a reimbursement award based on the cost of the impairment rating fee, which on this record we determine to be $500.00.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, Sean McPartland, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Ahlers and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Vaitheswaran, P.J.  (9 pages)

            Mathew Llopis appeals from a district court decree of paternity establishing custody, visitation, and support for the parties’ child, challenging (I) the visitation schedule; (II) the amount of child support and the district court’s failure to allocate his transportation costs; and (III) decisions made at the pretrial conference and with respect to the admission of certain exhibits.  OPINION HOLDS: We affirm the district court’s decree.   

              Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Story County, John R. Flynn, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Heard by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Greer and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Greer, J.  Dissent by Vaitheswaran, P.J.  (16 pages)

              The Estate of Donald L. Grove, and Karen L. Grove, both individually and as administrator of the estate, appeal the district court’s grant of summary judgment against them in their slip and fall case.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the admissible evidence proffered did not generate a genuine question of material fact about the cause of Donald’s fall, we affirm.  DISSENT ASSERTS: I respectfully dissent.  I would conclude the evidence offered in resistance to summary judgment was admissible and generated genuine issues of material fact that precluded summary judgment.

              Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Michael D. Huppert, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Heard by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Greer and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Greer, J.  (19 pages)

              Following a bench trial, David Anders appeals the district court ruling that his personal guaranty of a lease was enforceable by successor landlord Aterra 144, 1960 Grand Avenue, WDM, LLC (Aterra) and the judgment entered against him.  Anders raises a number of alternative theories why the district court erred in its ruling, claiming (1) Aterra’s predecessor in interest abandoned his guaranty, (2) his guaranty was discharged through accord and satisfaction, and (3) Aterra waived his guaranty by failing to rely on it when it purchased the leased premises in 2019.  Anders also challenges the district court’s award of attorney fees to Aterra as excessive.  OPINION HOLDS: Because Anders’s personal guaranty is still enforceable, we affirm the district court’s ruling and judgment against him.  We do not consider his challenge to the award of attorney fees, as he failed to appeal that judgment. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Story County, Amy M. Moore, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Greer and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Chicchelly, J.  (9 pages)

            David Schmitz appeals the dismissal of his claim for violation of Iowa’s whistleblower statute, codified at Iowa Code section 70A.29 (2019).  The district court granted a motion for summary judgment filed by the defendants: the Nevada Community School District and its superintendent, Dr. Steve Gray.  Schmitz contends summary judgment was improper because there were genuine issues of material fact as to the validity of the parties’ separation agreement and the reasons for his termination.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding the separation agreement was valid and enforceable, we affirm the district court’s order.

              Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Wayne County, Dustria A. Relph, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Schumacher and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, P.J.  (5 pages)

              Debra Eccleston appeals her prison sentence for forgery, arguing it was too harsh.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the district court properly acted within its discretion, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, Linda Fangman, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Vaitheswaran, P.J., and Greer and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Vaitheswaran, P.J. (6 pages)

            Matthew Heim appeals his sentence for third-degree sexual abuse and possession of a controlled substance, third or subsequent offense, arguing the district court (1) considered an unproven offense in imposing sentence and (2) failed to consider mitigating factors.  OPINION HOLDS: We affirm Heim’s sentence, concluding the district court did not rely on unproven offenses in sentencing Heim and its statement of reasons for imposition of the sentence did not reflect an abuse its discretion.