–The man who was convicted last month in the shooting death of Algona Police Officer Kevin Cram is asking for a new trial.
Attorneys for 44-year-old Kyle Lou Ricke filed a motion Monday in Kossuth County District Court, asking for a new trial following his conviction on a charge of 1st Degree Murder. Ricke was found guilty by a jury in Dickinson County following a 4-day trial in July.
In her motion, Attorney Barbara Westphal argues that both the court and the jury made mistakes during the proceedings that should result in a new trial. She argues that the court was wrong to overrule the defense’s motion for a Judgement of Acquittal due to insufficient evidence on the 1st Degree Murder charge.
Westphal contends that Ricke did not act with premeditation on the night of September 13th, 2023, a part of the crime needed to warrant a conviction on the charge of 1st Degree Murder. The defense contends Ricke could not have formed the necessary premeditation during the 90 seconds between his first encounter with Officer Cram that night and the shooting.
She also argues the jury made a mistake by convicting him on the murder charge, as the evidence does not support that decision.
Ricke is currently scheduled to be sentenced on August 21st in Kossuth County District Court. A conviction on a charge of 1st Degree Murder carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
