State v. Iowa District Court for Scott County

Eugene Peter Van Driel, age fifty-five, was convicted of sexual abuse in the third degree in violation of Iowa Code section 709.-4(2)(c)(4) (1991) (abuser, who is at least six years older than the victim, commits a sex act with a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old). Van Driel filed an appeal, and the district court admitted Van Driel to bail pending appeal.

The State petitioned for writ of certiorari, contending the district court exceeded its authority in admitting Van Driel to bail. We granted the State’s petition, and we now sustain the writ.

We first address Van Driel’s claim that the State…