2024 Archive | Court of Appeals Court Opinions

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Dubuque County, Michael J. Shubatt, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., Schumacher, J., and Blane, S.J.  Opinion by Blane, S.J.  (15 pages)

            John Feller appeals the denial of his application to modify sex offender registry requirements.  OPINION HOLDS: Although it is a difficult case, substantial evidence supports the district court’s decision that Feller’s risk of reoffense and the interests of public safety require that he continue placement on the registry at this time.  So we find no abuse of discretion and affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, David Nelmark, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Heard by Bower, C.J., and Schumacher and Langholz, JJ.  Opinion by Langholz, J.  (17 pages)

            Some owners of the Fox Prairie Plaza appeal the district court’s grant of summary judgment dismissing their breach-of-contract suit against Walters Companies, Inc.—the original developer and general contractor that built the Fox Prairie Plaza—under an assignment of a construction contract that Walters allegedly made with itself.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the owners presented no evidence from which a jury could find that they obtained a valid assignment of a right to sue Walters under Walters’s alleged contract with itself, their breach-of-contract claim fails. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Cerro Gordo County, James M. Drew, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Greer, P.J., and Ahlers and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Buller, J.  (4 pages)

            An applicant appeals the denial of postconviction relief.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding trial counsel did not render ineffective assistance, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, Casey D. Jones, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Bower, C.J., Badding, J., and Carr, S.J.  Opinion by Carr, S.J.  (5 pages)

            Christy Gainvors failed to pay the outstanding balance on her charge account, which she allegedly opened and charged at her prior place of employment without proper authorization.  A jury convicted Gainvors of theft in the third degree.  She now appeals her conviction, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding the verdict is supported by substantial evidence, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, Brook Jacobsen, Judge.  AFFIRMED AND REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Badding and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, P.J.  Dissent by Buller, J.  (5 pages)

            A defendant appeals his sentence for assault causing bodily injury.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding that the district court sentenced the defendant according to his plea agreement but included the wrong assault title and code section in the judgment order, we affirm the conviction and remand for the district court to amend the judgment to reflect the correct offense.  DISSENT ASSERTS: Because the elected branches did not intend for us to find “good cause” to correct typos, I dissent.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Woodbury County, Roger L. Sailer, Judge.  REVERSED AND REMANDED.  Heard by Bower, C.J., and Badding and Langholz, JJ.  Opinion by Langholz, J.  (16 pages)

            Emerson Saul was injured at a Seaboard Triumph Foods, LLC pork processing plant, where he was a temporary employee, while employed by a staffing agency.  He appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment to Seaboard Triumph, dismissing his negligence lawsuit over his workplace injury after holding that Seaboard Triumph was also his employer.  OPINION HOLDS: Seaboard Triumph presented strong evidence supporting its motion for summary judgment from which a factfinder could conclude that it was Saul’s second employer.  But we cannot say that this is the only reasonable conclusion a factfinder could reach from the evidence—especially given that Seaboard Triumph’s human resources manager testified that Saul was not Seaboard Triumph’s employee.  The district court thus erred in granting summary judgment.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Johnson County, Paul D. Miller, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Greer, P.J., and Ahlers and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Ahlers, J.  (5 pages)

            Curtis Jones appeals the summary disposition of his application for postconviction relief.  He argues that his trial counsel was ineffective when arguing against a motion to strike a potential juror for cause and appellate counsel was ineffective for failing to raise the issue.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the potential juror had a felony conviction, under the Iowa Rules of Criminal Procedure in effect at the time of trial, the district court was required to grant the motion to strike for cause.  Trial and appellate counsel did not provide ineffective assistance.  Summary disposition of the application for postconviction relief was properly granted.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Patrick A. McElyea, Judge.  REVERSED AND REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS.  Heard by Greer, P.J., and Ahlers and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Buller, J.  Special Concurrence by Greer, P.J.  (28 pages)

            A deceased independent contractor and his family challenge the grant of summary judgment for a land possessor in a premises-liability action.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the district court applied the incorrect duty of care and we do not modify the duty of care of land possessors, we reverse and remand with directions to apply the correct duty of care owed by land possessors to entrants.  SPECIAL CONCURRENCE ASSERTS: I agree with the majority that this case should be remanded for further consideration but disagree over what we should direct the district court to do.  In my opinion, the court must revisit Alcoa, Inc.’s (Alcoa) potential liability under both the land possessor-entrant theory and the employer-independent contractor theory without separating the two—as Charles Beverage was both an entrant and the employee of Alcoa’s independent contractor at the same time.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Tom Reidel, Judge.  APPEAL DISMISSED.  Heard by Ahlers, P.J., and Chicchelly and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Ahlers, P.J.  (8 pages)

            Aspire of Pleasant Valley appeals the district court’s order dismissing its claim against an agent under her mother’s power of attorney.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the person named as agent in the power of attorney does not and cannot serve as agent any longer, the issue whether an agent can be sued in the agent’s representative capacity is now moot.  As neither the voluntary-cessation or public-importance exceptions to the mootness doctrine apply, we dismiss the appeal.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, Kellyann M. Lekar, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Greer and Schumacher, JJ.  Buller, J., takes no part.  Opinion by Greer, J.  (4 pages)

            Daniel Penticoff appeals from the denial of his application for postconviction relief.  OPINION HOLDS: Penticoff cannot establish by clear and convincing evidence that no reasonable factfinder could find him guilty of first-degree robbery; we affirm. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Adams County, Brad McCall, Judge.  AFFIRMED ON APPEAL; AFFIRMED AND REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS ON CROSS-APPEAL.  Heard by Bower, C.J., and Badding and Langholz, JJ.  Opinion by Badding, J.  (18 pages)

            Parties appeal and cross-appeal the district court’s remand ruling on remedies in an employment-contract dispute.  OPINION HOLDS: We affirm on the employee’s appeal, concluding she did not meet her burden to prove the liquidated-damages clause constituted a penalty and was therefore unenforceable.  On the employer’s cross-appeal, we find the affirmative-defense and burden-shifting argument was not preserved and substantial evidence supports the court’s conclusion on the amount of damages.  We affirm and remand the issue of appellate attorney fees to the district court, to be considered with its determination of trial attorney fees.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Lucas County, Elisabeth Reynoldson, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Badding and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Buller, J.  (4 pages)

            A criminal defendant appeals his conviction, challenging denial of his motion to suppress.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the traffic stop was supported by probable cause and reasonable suspicion, we affirm.