Eastern Iowa Attorney Challenging Reynolds On Judicial Appointment
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – An Iowa attorney has filed documents in state court challenging the validity of Gov. Kim Reynolds’ appointment of an eastern Iowa judge.
Lawyer Gary Dickey says Reynolds failed to appoint Judge Jason Besler within 30 days as required by the Iowa Constitution.
Reynolds filed the paperwork to appoint Besler in June five days after the deadline had passed. She says she made the appointment by the deadline verbally to her chief of staff but acknowledges no documentation exists to
prove it.
Dickey, who served as former Democratic Gov. Tom Vilsack’s chief attorney, filed documents Thursday seeking permission of the court to challenge Besler’s appointment.
Dickey also seeks to move it from eastern Iowa, where Besler sits as a judge, to Des Moines to avoid having fellow district judges ruling on his status.
In October Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady said the
governor’s word that the appointment was timely deserves respect unless resolved differently through the legal process.
Attorney With High Profile Client Is Criticized For Comments
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – A lawyer representing a high-profile Iowa murder suspect has removed a Facebook post in which he attacked another one of his clients as an “idiot” and “terrible criminal” who deserved to be jailed.
Attorney Chad Frese said Friday that his post was being misinterpreted but that he doesn’t believe it violated ethical rules.
Frese and his wife are representing Cristhian Bahena Rivera, who’s charged with killing 20-year-old Mollie Tibbetts.
In the post, Frese recounted meeting with a different defendant to prepare for a trial involving federal gun and drug charges. He wrote that he was “flabbergasted” when the man suggested Frese would have a hard time connecting with blue-collar jurors.
Frese says he called the man a “terrible criminal” who “needed to shut his mouth because he was the dumbest person in the conversation by 100 times.” He added, “you wonder why we need jails huh?”
Reynolds Questions Hubbell’s Wealth As To Whether He Can Relate To Most Iowans
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Many wealthy politicians occupy governor’s offices and congressional seats, making it notable that Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds made an issue of Democratic candidate Fred Hubbell’s inherited wealth.
GOP officials have called Hubbell “Prince Frederick,” and Reynolds says it’s a fair question whether Hubbell can relate to working Iowans.
Hubbell says Reynolds has targeted his wealth because she doesn’t have a strong record to run on.
At least 11 current U.S. governors have millions in personal wealth. In Nebraska, a Democratic challenger, Bob Krist, has made wealth an issue, calling billionaire Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts “Wall Street Pete.”
Political consultants say wealth doesn’t matter much to voters these days. Instead, they’re drawn to candidates who aren’t career politicians, but outsiders with business experience.
