Des Moines, September 8, 2014–On Friday, September 12, members of the Iowa Supreme Court will visit five Iowa City area high schools to meet with students and discuss the role of the courts. The justices will visit City, West, and Regina Catholic high schools in Iowa City, Solon High School in Solon, and Clear Creek Amana High School in Tiffin.
High school visit schedule for Friday, September 12, 2014
Justice David Wiggins will visit Clear Creek Amana High School at 8:30 a.m.
Justice Brent Appel will visit Iowa City West High School at 9:00 a.m.
Justice Edward Mansfield will visit Regina Catholic High School at 9:15 a.m.
Justice Bruce Zager will visit Solon High School at 9:30 a.m.
Justice Daryl Hecht will visit Iowa City High School at 10:00 a.m.
In addition to the school visits, the supreme court will hold a special session in Iowa City on Thursday evening, September 11, in the Iowa City West High School auditorium, 2901 Melrose Avenue. During the special session, the court will hear oral arguments in two cases. The session begins at 7 p.m. and the oral arguments are open to the public. A public reception with the justices in the auditorium lobby will follow the oral arguments.
Special Session
Thursday, September 11, 2014, at 7:00 p.m.
Iowa City West High School auditorium
2901 Melrose Avenue
Iowa City, Iowa
The Iowa Supreme Court will hear lawyers argue in two cases:
State of Iowa v. Zachariah J. Rogerson, No. 13-1329, from Dubuque County
The defendant is charged with four counts of serious injury by operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. Rogerson was granted discretionary review from the district court's order allowing some of the state's witnesses (who reside out of state and witnesses from the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Criminalistics Laboratory) to testify at trial using the Iowa Communications Network (ICN). Rogerson argues it would violate his rights under the Confrontation Clauses of the United States and Iowa Constitutions to allow the state's witnesses to testify from outside of the courtroom via the ICN network when the state did not present any evidence of the necessity to allow remote testimony.
State of Iowa v. Yvette Marie Louisell, Case Number 14-0175, from Story County
The state appeals from the resentencing of Louisell who was convicted of murder in the first degree in 1988 for an offense she committed at seventeen years of age. The state argues the principles of cruel and unusual punishment allow a district court to strike down an unconstitutional sentence, but do not authorize it to create a determinate sentence. The district court imposed a 25-year sentence that, in light of Louisell's credit for time served, would result in her immediate release from prison. The district court's resentencing order was stayed pending the resolution of the state's appeal.
Public Reception
There will be a public reception sponsored by the Johnson County Bar Association immediately following the court proceeding in the West High School auditorium lobby.
Streaming of Oral Arguments
The September 11 oral arguments will be streamed live by Iowa City West High School. A live video stream is available online at http://www.highschoolcube.com/event/363172
The live streaming begins at 7:00 p.m.
For more information about the oral arguments
Attorneys' briefs for the two cases and a guide to oral arguments are posted on the Iowa Judicial Branch website at:
http://www.iowacourts.gov/About_the_Courts/Supreme_Court/Offsite_Oral_Arguments_Iowa_City/
