Velez v. Clarinda Corr. Facility, No. 14-2327 (8th Cir. 2015)
Annotate this CaseBecause of an unpaid drug debt, Velez attacked the victim in a prolonged beating with a metal pole causing numerous broken bones and other serious injuries. Velez pleaded guilty to two counts of "willful injury causing serious injury" under Iowa law. The plea agreement provided that the state would recommend consecutive sentences for the counts, both based upon the July 5, 2010, incident. The state court sentenced Velez to consecutive 10-year sentences. On appeal, Velez asserted there was an inadequate factual basis for his plea, that counsel was ineffective, and that the sentence violated the Double Jeopardy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The Iowa Court of Appeals reversed, finding that the plea colloquy only established a factual basis for the proposition that Velez had caused multiple serious injuries, not that there were at least two discrete incidents. The Iowa Supreme Court reversed, finding that the record as a whole contained a sufficient factual basis to support a finding of two separate assaults. The federal district court denied habeas relief, finding that the state court's adjudication of the federal issue was not an unreasonable application of the Supreme Court's double jeopardy jurisprudence and that Velez's convictions were not based upon an unreasonable determination of the facts. The Eighth circuit affirmed.
Court Description: Beam, Author, with Bye and Benton, Circuit Judges] Prisoner case - Habeas. The Iowa Supreme Court did not unreasonably apply Supreme Court precedent regarding double jeopardy when it ruled that Velez's assault on a victim could be considered as two separate acts because Velez twice stopped the assault, thereby committing separate and discrete assaults on the victim and permitting Iowa courts to impose two separate sentences for the offenses.
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