Posted on

Rockford man’s case before Supreme Court Thursday night in Cedar Falls

The Iowa Supreme Court hears oral arguments in a case in Charles City April 4. Press file photo
The Iowa Supreme Court hears oral arguments in a case in Charles City April 4. A case to be heard in Cedar Falls on Thursday night, Nov. 2, will involve a Floyd County case. Press file photo
By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

A Rockford man’s assault and drug charges case will be the focus of oral arguments before the Iowa Supreme Court Thursday evening in Cedar Falls.

The court session will begin at 7 p.m. in the Cedar Falls High School Auditorium, 1015 Division St., and will pit an attorney from the Iowa Attorney General’s Office representing the state, against attorney David Kuehner of Charles City representing his client, Jason Gene Weitzel.

Weitzel, 40, pleaded guilty in May 2016 to charges of domestic abuse assault, a felony; second offense possession of methamphetamine and carrying weapons, aggravated misdemeanors; and operating while intoxicated, a serious misdemeanor.

He was sentenced to serve not more than nine years in prison and ordered to pay fines and restitution.

He appealed his conviction and sentence, however, arguing that he had not been made aware of an additional 35 percent court surcharge that would be applied to his fines.

On a 7-2 vote, the Iowa Court of Appeals overturned the conviction and sentence and sent the case back to Floyd County District Court for retrial.

The appeals court ruled that Weitzel’s guilty plea had not been truly voluntary because he was not aware of the total penalty possible for such a plea.

“The plea must not only be free from compulsion, but must also be knowing and intelligent,” the appeals court said. “Due process requires the defendant to have an understanding of ‘the constitutional protections that he gives up by pleading guilty.’”

After the appeals court handed down its ruling, the state Attorney General’s Office asked the Iowa Supreme Court for further review and that court agreed to hear the case.

The oral arguments Thursday night in Cedar Falls are part of the state Supreme Court’s practice of holding sessions outside of Des Moines to make the judiciary more accessible and to show people how the courts work.

Kuehner said he has argued a case before the state Supreme Court once before, last winter, but that was at the Iowa Judicial Branch Building in Des Moines, in front of about 15 to 20 people.

In Cedar Falls there is likely to be an auditorium full of people.

“I have a feeling once I’m up there I won’t be distracted by the number of people in the auditorium,” Kuehner said Wednesday. “I’ll be focusing on the facts of the case.”

He said he was excited about the opportunity to again argue a case in front of the state Supreme Court, and about the special nature of the event.

“I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “I’ve told all my friends and family.”

Kuehner said he was a little surprised that this case was chosen for one of the Supreme Court’s public events outside of Des Moines, because it is a more technical case that some people may not be able to follow.

In April the Supreme Court held a similar event in Charles City at the North Grand Auditorium, hearing oral arguments in a case involving sports injury liability.

“The one here (in Charles City), it was a baseball and a dugout — pretty easy to understand,” Kuehner said. His case in Cedar Falls is more about expectations on how trial court should operate, he said.

A public reception will be held in the Cedar Falls High School lobby following oral arguments. The Cedar Falls High School Student Council is sponsoring the reception.

The court justices will also visit high school classrooms Thursday and Friday in Cedar Falls and Waterloo.

According to court documents, Weitzel was arrested March 6, 2016, after a series of events that started with Weitzel allegedly punching his wife in the head and shoulders, waving and shooting a handgun outdoors, then later smashing his wife’s head into a wall and a pipe and choking her.

Floyd County sheriff’s deputies responded to a domestic violence call, but Weitzel had already left the home.

A six-hour search that involved tracking a cellphone, Floyd County deputies, six Iowa Patrol troopers and a state Patrol airplane eventually located Weitzel between Nora Springs and Rockford.

During a 2-to-3-mile chase, deputies allegedly observed Weitzel throw something from his vehicle, which was recovered and identified as two glass pipes and a small baggy filled with what was later identified as meth.

When he was stopped he was allegedly found in possession of a loaded 9mm handgun and was field-tested and found to be operating under the influence, according to the criminal complaint.

 

Social Share

LATEST NEWS
This is your last page