The Iowa Supreme Court says probation time served by a Crawford County man in a sentencing mistake has to be credited to his prison sentence.
Christopher Jepsen was convicted of two counts of third-degree sexual abuse in 2011 involving a 13 and 14 year old victim. Jepsen was 25 years old at the time and although one of the counts was a felony, his sentenced was suspended and he was given five years of probation.
Jepsen violated his probation after serving four years and four months, and the sentencing mistake was then found. The district court re-sentenced him to two concurrent ten-year prison terms. He appealed, saying he should get credit for the probation time he already served.
The Supreme Court ruled Jepsen should have time spent on probation taken off his sentence under the Double Jeopardy Clause — which prevents two sentences for the same crime. Two justices disagreed with the majority that Jepsen should be given full credit for the probation time.
Justice Bruce Zager did not agree with the overall ruling — saying Jepsen should not have been given any credit for time served on probation — as he enjoyed many freedoms on probation that he would not have enjoyed in prison as he was able to live at home, get married, start a family.
Here’s the ruling: Jepsen-Probation-Ruling-PDF