2025 Archive | Court of Appeals Court Opinions

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Page County, Greg W. Steensland, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Badding, P.J., Buller, J., and Vogel, S.J.  Opinion by Vogel, S.J.  (3 pages)

            A defendant appeals his conviction for operating while intoxicated.  OPINION HOLDS: Because the State proved the defendant operated his motor vehicle while controlled substances—amphetamine and methamphetamine—were present in the defendant’s urine, substantial evidence supports the jury’s verdict.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Page County, Margaret Reyes, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Greer, P.J., and Langholz and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Langholz, J.  (4 pages)

            Melissa Pedersen appeals her five-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to dependent adult abuse resulting in serious injury.  OPINION HOLDS: The district court did not abuse its discretion in sentencing Pedersen to prison rather than suspending the sentence and imposing probation. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Delaware County, Mark R. Lawson and Melissa A. Anderson-Seeber, Judges.  REVERSED AND REMANDED.  Heard at oral argument by Schumacher, P.J, and Badding and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Schumacher, P.J.  (20 pages)

            A party appeals two orders by the district court: one declining to enforce a settlement agreement between the parties and one finding a fence a party erected “was a clear violation of the express easement that had been in existence since 1981.”  OPINION HOLDS: We conclude a settlement agreement was reached between the parties.  As such, we reverse and remand for the entry of an order of enforcement as to the settlement agreement.  And because the resolution of the settlement agreement issue is dispositive of the appeal, we do not address the claim concerning the enforcement of the easement.  

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Buchanan County, Richard D. Stochl, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Tabor, C.J., Buller, J., and Vogel, S.J.  Opinion by Vogel, S.J.  (5 pages)

            A defendant appeals his conviction for operating while intoxicated, arguing the district court erroneously excluded evidence.  OPINION HOLDS: The district court did not abuse its discretion when excluding evidence relating to the defendant’s prior history with a local police officer during trial, as that officer was not involved with this traffic stop, the evidence was not probative of any material issue, and the defendant was not prejudiced by its exclusion.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Pottawattamie County, Eric J. Nelson, Judge.  REVERSED AND REMANDED.  Heard at oral argument by Greer, P.J., and Langholz and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Sandy, J.  (11 pages)

            Following a combined pre-trial hearing, the district court granted Zachary Yost’s motion to dismiss one count of continuous sexual abuse of a child in violation of Iowa Code section 709.23 (2021) because it found this count constituted a violation of the ex post facto clauses of the state and federal constitutions.  In the same ruling, the district court also denied the State’s motion to amend the trial information because it believed such an amendment violated Yost’s speedy indictment rights.  On appeal, the State contends the district court erred by finding that (1) Yost’s charge for continuous sexual abuse of a child amounted to an ex post facto violation; and (2) its proposed amendment violated Yost’s speedy indictment rights.  OPINION HOLDS: After our careful review of the record, we find the district court erred in dismissing count one.  Instead, the district court should have granted the State’s motion to amend the trial information.  The amendment was proper and did not violate Yost’s speedy indictment rights.  Additionally, the amendment effectively remedied ex post facto concerns. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Johnson County, Sean McPartland, Judge.  REVERSED AND REMANDED.  Considered without oral argument by Tabor, C.J., and Ahlers and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Ahlers, J.  (7 pages)

            Mazin Mohamedali appeals the summary disposition of his application for postconviction relief following revocation of his probation.  OPINION HOLDS: Mohamedali’s challenge to the probation-revocation court’s imposition of a new sentence, which was harsher than the suspended sentence he already received, amounts to an illegal sentence.  The probation-revocation court’s imposition of a new, harsher sentence was illegal.  We reverse and remand for entry of an order granting Mohamedali’s motion for summary judgment and an order striking the portion of the probation-revocation order imposing the mandatory minimum sentence.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, Meghan Corbin, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Greer, P.J., and Langholz and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Sandy, J.  (13 pages)

Octavius Sallis appeals his conviction for homicide by vehicle by operating while intoxicated in violation of Iowa Code section 707.6A(1) (2023), challenging the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the conviction.  Specifically, he asserts the evidence was insufficient to establish that (1) he was intoxicated while driving and (2) his intoxication caused the death of the victim.  OPINION HOLDS: Because we conclude the jury’s verdict is supported by substantial evidence, we affirm. 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, David Nelmark, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Schumacher, P.J., and Badding and Chicchelly, JJ.  Opinion by Badding, J.  (14 pages)

            Charles Hasselmann appeals the denial of his application for postconviction relief that alleged claims of ineffective assistance of defense counsel and actual innocence.  He also raises a new ineffective-assistance claim on appeal.  OPINION HOLDS: We find that defense counsel did not breach any essential duties, there is not clear and convincing evidence to support Hasselmann’s actual innocence claim, and there is not a sufficient record for us to review the new postconviction and appellate ineffective-assistance claim.  Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s decision denying Hasselmann’s application for postconviction relief.

    Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Webster County, Angela L. Doyle, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Schumacher, P.J., Langholz, J., and Bower, S.J.  Opinion by Bower, S.J.  (7 pages)

    Lakendrick Mosley appeals his conviction for murder in the first degree, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the jury’s verdict.  OPINION HOLDS: Upon our review, we affirm. 
 

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Marshall County, Bethany Currie, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Tabor, C.J., Buller, J., and Vogel, S.J.  Opinion by Vogel, S.J. (11 pages)

            A defendant appeals his convictions, arguing several improper statements warrant a new trial and insufficient evidence supports his child-endangerment convictions.  OPINION HOLDS: The district court did not abuse its discretion in denying the mistrial motions because its curative instructions remedied any potential unfairness, and substantial evidence supports the defendant’s child-endangerment convictions.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Michael D. Huppert (dismissal) and Scott D. Rosenberg (summary judgment), Judges.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Ahlers, P.J., and Badding and Langholz, JJ.  Opinion by Langholz, J.  (11 pages)

            Charles and Karen Buel appeal the district court’s dismissal of their negligence claims against Shane Schuler for untimely service and its grant of summary judgment on their underinsured-motorist claim against their insurer, Nationwide Agribusiness Insurance Company, based on their inability to recover against Schuler.  OPINION HOLDS: We agree that the Buels have not shown good cause for failing to serve Schuler by the ninety-day deadline.  When resisting dismissal, the Buels offered only vague descriptions of efforts to serve Schuler, provided no concrete details about what investigative steps were taken or when, and could not explain significant gaps between attempts at service.  The Buels failed to preserve error on their argument that the district court erred in granting summary judgment on their claim against Nationwide.  None of their arguments on appeal were made to or considered by the district court.  So we cannot consider them for the first time on appeal.  We thus affirm the dismissal of the Buels’ suit.

            Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Linn County, Valerie L. Clay, Judge.  AFFIRMED.  Considered without oral argument by Greer, P.J., and Langholz and Sandy, JJ.  Opinion by Langholz, J.  (3 pages)

            Dorian Parkinson II appeals the denial of postconviction relief from his convictions for domestic abuse assault causing bodily injury by strangulation, domestic abuse assault causing bodily injury, and interference with official acts.  He argues that he received ineffective assistance of counsel from his defense counsel relating to his guilty plea.  OPINION HOLDS: On our de novo review, we agree with the district court that Parkinson has failed to prove that his counsel breached an essential duty.  We thus affirm with a memorandum opinion under Iowa Court Rule 21.26.