Court turns down Rock Valley murder conviction appeal

Iowa’s court of appeals has turned down the appeal of a murder conviction. Sioux County Attorney Melissa O’Rourke says the decision came in the case of Kristy van Oort of Rock Valley. She pleaded guilty last August to second-degree murder in the death of 87-year-old Dick Post, a patient at the nursing home in Rock Valley. The Appeals Court said she didn’t raise any issues that could affect her conviction. Van Oort told the court she was feeding the man when she became angry and shoved food into his throat until he could no longer breathe. Van Oort was sentenced to 50 years in prison. She can still appeal to the state supreme court.