Estherville, Iowa — An Estherville man who said he should have a new trial after he was convicted of second-degree murder in Estherville is instead to be sentenced this Wednesday, December 21st.
Court records say 19-year old Lee Christensen was convicted this past summer of the June 2015 murder of 19-year old Thomas Bortvit of Estherville.
Christensen’s legal counsel had filed a motion stating that Christensen’s Iowa and US Constitutional rights to a fair trial and due process of law were violated in the trial due to a number of factors. They say that it was possible that some of the jurors made their decision because of social media posts, specifically a Facebook post, or by community comments about threats of public disorder or violence if Christensen was not convicted of First Degree Murder.
District Judge David Lester ruled on Monday, December 5th that “the . . . preponderance of the evidence establishes that it was not until after the jury had reached their verdict that such evidence was discussed. More importantly, the one juror who admitted she had heard the information during the course of the trial considered it ‘ridiculous’ and did not convey it to the other jurors, while another who thought she recalled hearing a comment [about] such information said the information was ‘fairly dismissed’ and could not recall when the information was conveyed.”
Christensen’s sentencing will take place at the Emmet County Courthouse in Estherville.
Second Degree Murder is a Class B Felony, and is punishable by up to 50 years in prison.
