IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA
No. 16-0921
Filed March 8, 2017
STATE OF IOWA,
Plaintiff-Appellee,
vs.
GREGORY A. TAYLOR,
Defendant-Appellant.
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Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Woodbury County, Todd A.
Hensley, District Associate Judge.
The defendant challenges his conviction for driving while his license was
barred. AFFIRMED.
Hannah Vellinga of Corbett, Anderson, Corbett, Vellinga & Irvin, L.L.P.,
Sioux City, for appellant.
Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, and Jean C. Pettinger, Assistant
Attorney General, for appellee.
Considered by Mullins, P.J., and Bower and McDonald, JJ.
2
MCDONALD, Judge.
Gregory Taylor pleaded guilty to driving while his license was barred, in
violation of Iowa Code sections 321.560 and 321.561 (2015). In this appeal, he
contends his plea counsel provided constitutionally deficient representation in
allowing Taylor to plead guilty without a factual basis for the plea and in failing to
investigate a motion to suppress evidence. The claims are without merit.
Taylor admitted in his written guilty plea he was operating a motor vehicle
while his license was barred and not in compliance with the terms of his
temporary restricted license. There was a factual basis in support of the plea.
See State v. Garcia-Villa, No. 14-0837, 2015 WL 3623816, at *1 (Iowa Ct. App.
June 10, 2015) (holding motorist was subject to criminal conviction for driving
while barred despite holding temporary restricted license where the motorist was
driving outside the parameters of the restricted license). Taylor’s counsel was
thus not ineffective. See State v. Finney, 834 N.W.2d 46, 62 (Iowa 2013)
(holding counsel was not ineffective in allowing the defendant to plead guilty
where there was a factual basis to support the plea).
The officer stopped Taylor’s vehicle for, among other reasons, an
equipment violation. The traffic stop was supported by probable cause. See
State v. Tyler, 830 N.W.2d 288, 293 (Iowa 2013) (stating when “a peace officer
observes a violation of the traffic laws, however minor, the officer has probable
cause to stop a motorist”). There was no basis to file a motion to suppress
evidence. Plea counsel had no duty to investigate and pursue an issue without
merit. See State v. Soboroff, 798 N.W.2d 1, 9 (Iowa 2011) (holding an attorney
has no duty to pursue a meritless issue).
3
We affirm the defendant’s conviction without further opinion. See Iowa Ct.
R. 21.26(a), (e).
AFFIRMED.