Appeals court denies Heemstra's appeal
Posted: Thursday, October 30, 2008
DES MOINES (AP) -- The Iowa Court of Appeals has upheld the voluntary manslaughter conviction of a central Iowa farmer who killed his neighbor and hid the body in a cistern.
Rodney Heemstra, of Milo, was released from a state prison in Fort Dodge this week after serving more than four years for killing Tom Lyon in January 2003.
Heemstra was originally convicted of first-degree murder. He appealed and the Iowa Supreme Court ordered a new trial.
Last year, a jury found Heemstra guilty of voluntary manslaughter and he was sentenced to 10 years. He was given credit for time already served under the murder conviction and released from prison on Tuesday.
In his appeal, Heemstra, 49, argues that the district court erred when it denied his motion to dismiss the voluntary manslaughter trial.
He maintains that the Supreme Court's reversal of the first-degree murder conviction constituted an acquittal. That would have barred a retrial on the grounds of double jeopardy, among other issues, he said.
Heemstra argued that the Supreme Court's ruling meant there were "insufficient facts to support either the state's felony murder or premeditated murder theories."
The appeals court said in Wednesday's ruling that the Supreme Court's reversal of Heemstra's conviction was the result of a legal error -- a faulty jury instruction -- not insufficient facts.
It said the Supreme Court didn't consider whether there were sufficient facts to sustain a conviction under a premeditated murder theory, concluding that double jeopardy wasn't an issue.
"Nothing in that decision barred Heemstra's retrial on first-degree murder based on the theory of premeditation," the appeals court wrote in Wednesday's ruling.
Heemstra has maintained that he shot 52-year-old Lyon in self defense after Lyon lunged at him during an argument. Court records show that the neighbors had a history of confrontations about land and cattle-watering equipment.
Prosecutors say that Heemstra dragged Lyon's body more than a mile before hiding it in a cistern and covering it with hay.
Lyon's family has filed a lawsuit scheduled for trial next month in Polk County District Court.
Rodney Heemstra, of Milo, was released from a state prison in Fort Dodge this week after serving more than four years for killing Tom Lyon in January 2003.
Heemstra was originally convicted of first-degree murder. He appealed and the Iowa Supreme Court ordered a new trial.
Last year, a jury found Heemstra guilty of voluntary manslaughter and he was sentenced to 10 years. He was given credit for time already served under the murder conviction and released from prison on Tuesday.
In his appeal, Heemstra, 49, argues that the district court erred when it denied his motion to dismiss the voluntary manslaughter trial.
He maintains that the Supreme Court's reversal of the first-degree murder conviction constituted an acquittal. That would have barred a retrial on the grounds of double jeopardy, among other issues, he said.
Heemstra argued that the Supreme Court's ruling meant there were "insufficient facts to support either the state's felony murder or premeditated murder theories."
The appeals court said in Wednesday's ruling that the Supreme Court's reversal of Heemstra's conviction was the result of a legal error -- a faulty jury instruction -- not insufficient facts.
It said the Supreme Court didn't consider whether there were sufficient facts to sustain a conviction under a premeditated murder theory, concluding that double jeopardy wasn't an issue.
"Nothing in that decision barred Heemstra's retrial on first-degree murder based on the theory of premeditation," the appeals court wrote in Wednesday's ruling.
Heemstra has maintained that he shot 52-year-old Lyon in self defense after Lyon lunged at him during an argument. Court records show that the neighbors had a history of confrontations about land and cattle-watering equipment.
Prosecutors say that Heemstra dragged Lyon's body more than a mile before hiding it in a cistern and covering it with hay.
Lyon's family has filed a lawsuit scheduled for trial next month in Polk County District Court.
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