Sentencing, bond details unresolved in Fairfield murder cases

Legal details surrounding the cases of two Fairfield teens accused of killing high school Spanish Teacher Nohema Graber remain unclear, including the specifics of what sentence they would face if convicted.

Iowa code for adults convicted of first-degree murder holds that they be sentenced to life without parole, but Assistant Jefferson County Attorney Patrick McAvan said that norm wouldn’t apply, despite the 16-year-olds being tried as adults.

“Life without possibility of parole for juveniles in court is not constitutional in the United States or Iowa Constitution,” McAvan said. “But there’s no alternative sentence in Iowa code, so that’s a very big question.”

The attorney for Defendant Jeremy Goodale waived the right to a preliminary hearing Tuesday morning, according to documents from the Jefferson County Clerk of Court.

“The defendant has the right to waive the preliminary hearing. This happens frequently,” McAvan said in an email. “That cancels his hearing for Friday. We will still file a trial information as required by law, but it does not have to be on file before the scheduled hearing on Friday.”

McAvan said the Willard Noble Chaiden Miller’s pretrial hearing would likely also be canceled.

“At this point it is expected that the Attorney General’s Office will be filing a trial information in Miller’s case,” he said. “Assuming it is approved, that would eliminate his hearing on Friday as well.”

According to McAvan, both Miller and Goodale’s attorneys filed motions to review and possibly reduce their posted $1 million bond, a development that Iowa Assistant Attorney General Scott D. Brown said the state strongly opposed.

“The defendant has made numerous statements indicating his involvement which include his state of mind at, before, and after the commission of the crime,” Brown said in two nearly identical responses to the requests, which were filed with the court. “No conditions of release supervision would provide for the safety or welfare of any community in which he resides. Such safety and welfare concerns far outweigh any other consideration … In the event the defendant is able to post the current bond, the State further requests that the Court place additional conditions on his release (including) home restriction, GPS monitoring, daily contact with a pretrial release supervisor, and any other condition the Court believes is warranted.”

McAvan said the bond review hearings were scheduled for the afternoon of Nov. 23.

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com