State v. Kress

636 N.W.2d 12, 2001 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 208, 2001 WL 1434603
CourtSupreme Court of Iowa
DecidedNovember 15, 2001
Docket00-1173
StatusPublished
Cited by67 cases

This text of 636 N.W.2d 12 (State v. Kress) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Iowa primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Kress, 636 N.W.2d 12, 2001 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 208, 2001 WL 1434603 (iowa 2001).

Opinion

LAVORATO, Chief Justice.

The defendant, Sherry Kay Kress, appeals from her conviction and sentence upon her guilty plea to procurement of a prescription drug by forgery. She contends that her counsel was ineffective in permitting her to enter a guilty plea and failing to file a motion in arrest of judgment because the district court misinformed her concerning the application of Iowa Code section 124.413 (1999) (minimum sentence provision). She also asserts the district court erred in imposing the one-third mandatory minimum sentence under section 124.413. We find no error in the court’s ruling on section 124.413 imposing the mandatory minimum sentence. However, because we conclude Kress has established her ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claim, we vacate her conviction and sentence and remand for further proceedings.

I. Background Facts and Proceedings.

On February 16, 2000, Kress presented a prescription for two drugs — Precose and Ritalin — to a pharmacist at Drug Town Pharmacy in Muscatine, Iowa. Ritalin is a schedule II controlled substance. See Iowa Code § 124.206(4)(d). The pharmacist noticed that the prescription appeared altered. He checked with the office of the physician whose name appeared on the prescription. In doing so, the pharmacist discovered that the physician had not signed the prescription and that Kress had only been prescribed Precose. A licensed physician’s assistant in the physician’s office had actually written the prescription for the drug Precose. The physician’s assistant was not legally authorized to prescribe Ritalin.

The pharmacist gave Kress a bottle with only two Ritalin pills (even though the prescription was for ninety) and called the police, who investigated the incident. As a result of the investigation, the State charged Kress with procurement of a prescription drug by forgery. See Iowa Code § 155A.23(l)(b) (providing that a person shall not “[ojbtain or attempt to obtain a prescription drug ... by ... [fjorgery or *16 alteration of a prescription or any written order”), (4) (providing that a person shall not “[m]ake or utter any false or forged prescription or written order”). The State also charged that on April 1, 1997, Kress had been convicted of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, a class “C” felony.

On May 26, District Judge James R. Havercamp took Kress’s plea of guilty. The judge told Kress that she would have to serve a minimum period of confinement equal to one-third of the maximum indeterminate sentence prescribed by the Iowa Code, unless the sentencing court waived the one-third requirement. In addition, the judge told Kress that, because of her prior conviction, the sentencing court would also have the discretion to impose up to three times the maximum sentence. The judge made clear that he was not telling Kress what her sentence would be, but rather what her sentence could be. After the attorneys advised the court that there was no plea agreement, the judge told Kress that the sentencing judge could impose any punishment authorized by law.

Neither Kress nor her attorney objected to or otherwise questioned the judge’s explanation of the possible punishments. After acknowledging she understood these possibilities, Kress pleaded guilty. She admitted that she had someone alter the prescription by adding the drug, Ritalin. She also admitted the prior drug conviction.

Dr. James Yeltatzie, one of Kress’s treating doctors, wrote a letter to Kress’s attorney two months before the plea proceedings. The letter helps explain the circumstances surrounding the incident. Dr. Yeltatzie wrote that Kress had been taking Ritalin, but that he had discontinued Ritalin and changed her medication to Adderal. The doctor explained that Adderal is actually stronger than Ritalin in controlling attention difficulties and problems with concentration. He further explained that Kress was not aware of this and began to panic because she did not have any Ritalin. The doctor concluded his letter, stating that he

would hope that the courts would be able to take into consideration her mental status, her sense of panic and the fact that I already [had] written for a stronger medication for her to receive, yet she could only focus on the fact that she did not have any Ritalin and this was very bothersome to her.

The record shows that Kress is afflicted with a number of health problems and is on numerous medications. Ironically, following the incident giving rise to the criminal charges, Kress’s doctor decided that Adderal was not effective and once again prescribed Ritalin.

On July 7, District Judge David E. Sehoenthaler sentenced Kress. The judge refused to enhance the sentence because of the prior conviction, waived any mandatory minimum requirements applicable to the sentence, and imposed an indeterminate ten-year sentence. The judge also assessed a $1000 fine and suspended Kress’s driver’s license for 180 days.

Minutes later, Judge Sehoenthaler reopened the record. The judge explained that he had no discretion to waive the one-third mandatory minimum sentence and deleted that provision from his sentencing order. Neither Kress nor her attorney objected. Nor did either file a motion in arrest of judgment challenging the validity of the plea.

II. Issues.

On appeal, Kress contends that her trial counsel was ineffective on two grounds. First, he failed to object during the plea proceedings after the district court im *17 properly informed Kress of the range of possible punishments. Second, he failed to file a motion in arrest of judgment to challenge the plea or otherwise object to the correction of the sentence once the court discovered its sentencing error. She asserts that her counsel’s failures were prejudicial because they resulted in a plea that was neither knowingly made nor voluntary. She asks us to set aside her conviction and sentence and remand the case for further proceedings.

In the alternative, Kress contends the district court incorrectly concluded that the mandatory minimum applied in this case. She asks us to vacate her sentence and remand the case for resentencing. We address the latter claim first.

III. One-third Mandatory Minimum Claim.

A. Error preservation and scope of review. As mentioned, Kress contends she was not subject to the one-third mandatory minimum sentence found in Iowa Code section 124.413. If she is correct, the sentence is illegal. An illegal sentence

is one that is not permitted by statute. An illegal sentence is void and “not subject to the usual concepts of waiver, whether from a failure to seek review or other omissions of error preservation.” Because an illegal sentence is void, it can be corrected at any time.

State v. Woody, 613 N.W.2d 215, 217 (Iowa 2000) (quoting State v. Ohnmacht, 342 N.W.2d 838, 842, 843 (Iowa 1983)) (citations omitted).

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Bluebook (online)
636 N.W.2d 12, 2001 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 208, 2001 WL 1434603, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-kress-iowa-2001.