Opinion
No. 13–0916.
07-16-2014
STATE of Iowa, Plaintiff–Appellee, v. Todd CARBER, Defendant–Appellant.
Mark C. Smith, State Appellate Defender, Shellie L. Knipfer, Assistant Appellate Defender, and John D. Twillman, Student Legal Intern, for appellant. Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Sharon K. Hall, Assistant Attorney General, John P. Sarcone, County Attorney, and Brendan E. Greiner, David Porter, and Celene Gogerty, Assistant County Attorneys, for appellee.
Mark C. Smith, State Appellate Defender, Shellie L. Knipfer, Assistant Appellate Defender, and John D. Twillman, Student Legal Intern, for appellant.
Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Sharon K. Hall, Assistant Attorney General, John P. Sarcone, County Attorney, and Brendan E. Greiner, David Porter, and Celene Gogerty, Assistant County Attorneys, for appellee.
Heard by VAITHESWARAN, P.J., MULLINS, J., and MILLER, S.J. McDONALD, J., takes no part.
Senior judge assigned by order pursuant to Iowa Code section 602.9206 (2013).
Opinion
VAITHESWARAN, P.J.
Todd Carber entered Alford pleas to (1) serious injury by vehicle by reckless driving and (2) operating a motor vehicle while under the influence. He filed a motion for adjudication of law points on the question of whether the district court had authority to suspend his sentence to the first crime. The district court concluded it lacked authority to suspend the sentence.
See North Carolina v. Alford, 400 U.S. 25, 37, 91 S.Ct. 160, 27 L.Ed.2d 162 (1970) (holding “express admission of guilt ... is not a constitutional requisite to the imposition of [a] criminal penalty”).
--------
On appeal, Carber contends “the district court erred in finding that it had no discretion to suspend [his] sentence for serious injury by vehicle by reckless driving when he also pled guilty to operating while under the influence.” Part II A of our analysis in State v. Rouse, No. 13–0981 (Iowa Ct.App. July 16, 2014), filed on this date, is controlling.
We conclude the district court lacked discretion to suspend Carber's sentence to the ser ious-injury-by-vehicle-by-reckless-driving count. We affirm Carber's judgment and sentence.