DES MOINES – A convicted Mason City domestic abuser has lost an appeal in a case where he was accused and later found guilty of violating a no-contact order numerous times.
Michael Holton, age 28, appealed the final judgment and sentencing in a domestic abuse case and subsequent violations of the attached no-contact order. Holton argued the district court abused its discretion in failing to modify the no-contact order after defense counsel told the court the victim desired to modify the no-contact order.
Last year, Holton pled guilty to second offense domestic assault. He had been charged with felony third offense domestic assault after an incident on the afternoon of July 29, 2014, when Mason City police responded to a domestic situation at 150 South Grover Avenue. Holton was arrested and charged that day. Holton was later accused 31 times of violating the no-contact order that was imposed in that domestic abuse case. As part of the plea deal, for the first no-contact order violation, Holton was sentenced to 60 days in jail.
Holton then appealed his sentence.
In upholding the guilty plea and sentence, the Iowa appeals court found that the district court recited on the record its reasons for extending the no-contact order and declining to modify it at the time of sentencing. Neither Holton nor his counsel represented the victim or should be allowed to represent her interests in these proceedings. The court did not abuse its discretion when explaining to Holton the reasons for declining to modify the no-contact order.
He remains incarcerated in a Fort Dodge prison at this time.
