2025 Archive | Court of Appeals Court Opinions

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Boone County, John R. Flynn, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Schumacher, P.J., Buller, J., and Potterfield, S.J.  Badding, J., takes no part.  Opinion by Potterfield, S.J.  (9 pages)

            Michael Zanoni appeals the district court’s denial of his application for postconviction relief (PCR) following his 2021 Alford guilty plea to possession with intent to deliver (methamphetamine), a class “C” felony.  Zanoni argues trial counsel provided ineffective assistance by failing to (1) review video evidence before the suppression hearing and (2) properly advise him of the circumstances of his case when he decided to plead guilty.  OPINION HOLDS: Zanoni failed to prove his claims of ineffective assistance; we affirm the denial of his PCR application.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Lawrence P. McLellan, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Tabor, C.J., Buller, J., and Bower, S.J.  Opinion by Bower, S.J. (14 pages)

            Kelley Tatum appeals his conviction for first-degree robbery, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence supporting his conviction and claiming the district court erred in failing to order a competency hearing.  OPINION HOLDS: Upon our review, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Pottawattamie County, Jeffrey L. Larson, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Schumacher, P.J., and Buller and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Sandy, J.  (6 pages)

            Nicholas Haner appeals the district court’s denial of his application for postconviction relief arguing that the sentence imposed amounts to cruel and unusual punishment because he was only twenty years old at the time of the crime and that his attorney was infective for “failing to request an opportunity to present evidence of the underdeveloped adolescent brain or evidence of brain damage from excessive use of drugs during his adolescence.”  OPINION HOLDS: Because Haner was not entitled to juvenile sentencing and has failed to provide an explanation for how he was prejudiced by his trial counsel’s alleged ineffectiveness, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Black Hawk County, Melissa Anderson-Seeber, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Schumacher, P.J., and Badding and Langholz, JJ.  Buller, J., takes no part.  Opinion by Langholz, J.  (3 pages)

            Taevon Washington appeals the denial of postconviction relief from his two convictions for third-degree sexual abuse.  He argues that he received ineffective assistance of counsel at his criminal trial because his attorneys failed to challenge the incapacity element of third-degree sexual assault and that he is actually innocent.  OPINION HOLDS: Washington cannot relitigate the same ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim that we already considered and rejected on his direct appeal.  And he has failed to satisfy his demanding burden to prove his actual innocence.  We thus affirm with a memorandum opinion under Iowa Court Rule 21.26.   

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Jeanie K. Vaudt, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Ahlers, P.J., and Badding and Buller, JJ.  Opinion by Ahlers, P.J.  (3 pages)

            Juan Delagarza appeals the denial of his application for postconviction relief.  He claims he received ineffective assistance from his criminal trial counsel.  OPINION HOLDS: We agree with the district court’s rationale in denying Delagarza’s claims, so we do not elaborate on its rationale and determination that trial counsel provided Delagarza with effective assistance.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Story County, Adria Kester, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Greer, P.J., Schumacher, J., and Vogel, S.J.  Opinion by Vogel, S.J.  (3 pages)

            Gustaf Carlson appeals the dismissal of his application for postconviction relief, claiming his guilty plea in the underlying criminal action was not voluntary.  OPINION HOLDS: Carlson cannot raise this claim for the first time in a postconviction-relief action because he provides no justification as to why he did not raise the claim previously by filing a motion in arrest of judgment. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Pottawattamie County, Kathleen A. Kilnoski, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered by Tabor, P.J., and Ahlers and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Ahlers, J.  (4 pages)

            Terrance Burnett appeals the dismissal of his third post-conviction (PCR) relief application.  He raises four arguments on appeal: (1) a new ground of law creates an exception to the statute of limitations governing his claim; (2) the statute of limitations violates article I, section 13 of the Iowa Constitution; (3) the 2019 amendments to the statute of limitations are unconstitutional and equitable tolling should be applied to make his application timely; and (4) his PCR trial counsel in this case was ineffective.  OPINION HOLDS: Burnett’s first two arguments have already been rejected by this court and the Iowa Supreme Court.  We have previously held that the case Burnett relies on does not satisfy the “new ground of law” exception, and our Supreme Court has rejected the argument that the statute of limitations violates the Iowa Constitution.  Because these arguments fail, Burnett’s application is time-barred.  His equitable tolling argument and challenge to 2019 statutory amendments were not raised before the district court and are not preserved for our review.  As his application is untimely, we cannot reach the merits of his ineffective-assistance claim.  For these reasons, we affirm the district court’s dismissal of Burnett’s PCR application.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Patrick A. McElyea, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Greer, P.J., and Langholz and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Sandy, J.  (5 pages)

            Lawrence McCoy argues that the district court erred in granting summary judgment dismissing his postconviction relief application.  Specifically, he argues that his claim of actual innocence is not barred by the statute of limitations based upon newly discovered evidence.  OPINION HOLDS: Viewing the facts in the light most favorable to McCoy, he has not generated a sufficient question of fact to survive summary dismissal.  We affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Buchanan County, Laura J. Parrish, Judge.  APPEAL DISMISSED.  Considered without oral argument by Schumacher, P.J., and Buller and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Sandy, J.  (5 pages)

            Ryan Parmely appeals from his conviction for first-offense OWI, arguing that he was not properly advised of the fact that his commercial driver’s license would be revoked upon his conviction and that he thus did not voluntarily enter his guilty plea.  OPINION HOLDS: Because Parmely waived his right to move in arrest of judgment, we lack appellate jurisdiction and dismiss his appeal. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, John Telleen, Judge.  REVERSED AND REMANDED.  Considered by Ahlers, P.J., and Badding and Buller, JJ.  Telleen, S.J., takes no part.  Opinion by Ahlers, P.J.  Dissent by Buller, J.  (13 pages)

            Johnathon (John) Sprague appeals the district court’s order enforcing a settlement agreement drafted by his ex-wife, Lanora Sprague.  John contends no binding settlement existed because the version enforced by the court omitted terms regarding the children’s transportation and extracurricular activities—terms he asserts were orally agreed to during an informal settlement conference.  Lanora requests John to pay her appellate attorney fees.  OPINION HOLDS: There is no record of the settlement conference, or the terms purportedly agreed to that day, nor is there a transcript or evidentiary record from the hearing on Lanora’s motion to enforce the settlement.  As a result, we have no basis on which to assess the parties’ competing claims.  Without an evidentiary record to support the district court’s decision, the order enforcing the settlement agreement is not supported by substantial evidence.  Accordingly, we reverse the district court’s order granting Lanora’s motion to enforce settlement and remand for further proceedings.  We deny Lanora’s request for appellate attorney fees.  DISSENT ASSERTS: I dissent because appeals aren’t supposed to be do-overs after you fail to make a record below.  In my view, the majority opinion decides this case backwards and reverses a district court ruling with inadequate record for us to conduct meaningful appellate review.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Chickasaw County, Joel Dalrymple, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Greer, P.J., and Badding and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Chicchelly, J. (5 pages)

            Shine Acaso Olson appeals the sentence imposed after pleading guilty to lascivious acts with a child.  OPINION HOLDS: Because we find the court did not consider an improper factor nor did it abuse its discretion by applying a fixed sentencing policy as alleged by Olson, we affirm.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Guthrie County, David Faith, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Tabor, C.J., and Ahlers and Langholz, JJ.  Opinion by Tabor, C.J.  (13 pages)

            Cindy Randel appeals her convictions for four drug-related offenses, conflating her challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence with her claim that the district court erred in denying her motion for new trial.  OPINION HOLDS: Finding sufficient evidence supporting Randel’s convictions and any challenge to the weight of the evidence both unpreserved and waived on appeal, we affirm.