The Iowa Supreme Court has given a bit of a reprieve to an eastern Iowa man accused of a third drunken driving offense. A Washington County jury found Timothy Kukowski guilty of driving drunk in Iowa in 2003. His previous convictions occurred in Oregon in 1995 and 1996. During his trial, after the jury had found him guilty but before his sentencing, Kukowski was asked by the judge to admit to those two convictions in Oregon. He was then sentenced to up to five years in prison. The Iowa Supreme Court has issued an opinion that says the trial judge didn’t follow the rules when it asked Kukowski to admit to his prior drunken driving arrests in open court, and then failed to let him refuse to answer. So, Kukowski gets to go back before the judge and get re-sentenced.
