The Iowa Court of Appeals rejected the appeal of a Chatsworth man in a hit-and-run death in rural Le Mars. Joan Wilson of rural Le Mars was running along a county road in May of 2004 when she was struck and killed by a vehicle. A Plymouth County jury convicted 39-year-old Richard Heien in March 2006 of homicide by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter and leaving the scene of a personal injury accident in connection with Wilson’s death.
Heien appealed his conviction, claiming there was not enough evidence to support his convictions. He also claimed his court-appointed attorney was ineffective for failing to argue the jury’s verdict was against the weight of the evidence. The Iowa Court of Appeals ruled there was no merit in Heien’s claims.