Mason City man jailed for contempt of court in connection to strangulation assault

MASON CITY – A Mason City man is in jail for contempt of court after he violated a no-contact order connected to his alleged assault with strangulation crime.

Records show James Richard Shipley was booked into the Cerro Gordo county jail Sunday evening, September 22, 2024, for violating a no-contact order. The no-contact order was set by a judge in Dubuque county on August 20, 2023, after Shipley allegedly committed an assault the day before. Shipley had been arrested by Dubuque police after an August 19, 2023 incident, and charged with the following crimes:

– DOMESTIC ABUSE ASSAULT IMPEDING FLOW OF AIR/BLOOD (AGGRAVATED MISDEMEANOR)

– DOMESTIC ABUSE ASSAULT- INJURY OR MENTAL ILLNESS – 1ST OFF (SERIOUS MISDEMEANOR)

The assault case is still in court, as Shipley has claimed self-defense and filed numerous motions, records show. He is due in Dubuque court for a pre-trial conference on October 17 and could face a jury trial on October 28.

Records show that on November 28, 2023, Mason City police accused Shipley of violating a no-contact order and a judge then issued a warrant for his arrest. However, Shipley again has filed numerous motions and appeals and delayed justice until he was finally ordered to jail for 7 days. He was also ordered to pay $1,615.59 in court fees and other costs.

Further court records show that Shipley (pictured at top) was served with a divorce notice from Danielle Shipley (now known again as Dana Naumann but apparently also uses the name Danielle) on September 13, 2023, and the divorce was finalized on May 15, 2024.  She is now the Cerro Gordo county assessor after a long stretch as the Mason City assessor.