Court Opinion

ID: 9689702
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 18:43:32.938571+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:18:51.495989
License: Public Domain

CARTER, Justice
(concurring specially).
I join in the opinion of the court as to all issues other than the merger issue. On that issue, I agree that there must be merger of convictions because the situation falls squarely under Iowa Code section 701.9 (1997). I do not agree with that *817portion of the court’s analysis that searches for legislative intent beyond the application of that statute.
As I indicated in my concurring opinion in State v. Daniels, 588 N.W.2d 682, 685-86 (Iowa 1998), the two-step analysis applied in the Halliburton case, 539 N.W.2d at 344, is misguided. A general statute such as section 701.9 is applicable to all crimes contained in the criminal code in the absence of a special statute negating its application. There is no special statute which does that. Consequently, section 701.9 is the controlling indicia of legislative intent on the merger issue in all situations in which lesser included offenses are involved. It is unnecessary and improper to resort to an ad hoc determination of legislative intent apart from the directives contained in section 701.9.