State of Iowa
v.
Michael Kenneth Hinners
Appellee
State of Iowa
Appellant
Michael Kenneth Hinners
Attorney for the Appellee
Timothy M. Hau, Assistant Attorney General
Attorney for the Appellant
Christopher Kragnes, Sr.
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Calhoun County, Derek Johnson, Judge. AFFIRMED. Considered by Greer, P.J., Buller, J., and Doyle, S.J. Opinion by Doyle, S.J. (8 pages)
After shooting his brother to death, Michael Hinners was charged with first-degree murder. After a bench trial, the trial court found him guilty of involuntary manslaughter. The court determined that assault by intentionally pointing any firearm at another—the predicate public offense to Hinners’s involuntary manslaughter conviction—was a general-intent crime. On appeal Hinners argues assault is a specific-intent crime and the court should have therefore considered his intoxication defense. OPINION HOLDS: We conclude the crime of assault by intentionally pointing a firearm at another under Iowa Code section 708.1(2)(c) is a general-intent crime. Involuntary manslaughter, without a specific-intent element, is a general-intent crime. Thus, the intoxication defense is not available to Hinners. So, the district court committed no error in not addressing the intoxication defense. We therefore affirm.
