Hon. Linda Fangman (Black Hawk) This judge is the absolute worst and does not care about the lives or well-being of the children her decisions make. On more than one account, she sides with the petitioner and will not listen to the defendant. Other - (9/23/2024 3:22:48 AM)

Hon. Jane F. Spande (Linn) One of the best judges this county has ever had. Criminal Defense Lawyer - (8/1/2024 12:14:06 AM)

Hon. Greg W. Steensland (Pottawatttamie) This guy cannot get off the bench fast enough for the benefit of the state of Iowa. How does a judge who was once [redacted]/suspended as a lawyer .... https://law.justia.com/cases/iowa/supreme-court/1985/85-1085-0.html Wasn’t his self pitying commentary given during sentencing about his reduction in sentence for an admitted convicted sex offender (63 counts) from 17 years to 5 months probation enough to tell the story? Yes - it’s all about HIM - not the victims. Showed no intellectual gifts during his tenure. Not a great writer. Lazy and unmotivated to serve smaller communities. One of many judges who stares at his phone during hearings, offers local cronies multiple chances to correct obvious errors so he can rule for them. [Redacted] enjoy the spoils of your career. Good riddance. Shame on anyone who voted for a person who made such significant ethical missteps before he ever took the bench. Iowans need to demand more from their local judges. Civil Litigation - Private - (7/5/2023 10:36:53 PM)

Hon. Andrew B. Chappell (Iowa) This is another apparatchik who is beholding to the legislature's current fad of protecting victims and diminishing abusers. Chappell's problem is he cannot tell the difference between the victim and the abuser. Chappell defers to litigant identity, the male father and the female mother. In Chappell's court, the mother who is the first to strike walks off with the spoils and the father is burdened with an expensive and lengthy litigation process leading to further losses. Young and inexperienced, anyone watching any case in Chappell's courtroom is immediately stricken with the perception that the young father will lose. Loss means children will be whisked away, child support will be imposed, marital property will be split such that mother gets stability and the young father gets instability. Chappell uses the complexity of the law to give the impression that due process is taking place, but the results are always the same for any young mother and any young father especially for young mothers who are first to strike with domestic violence claims. However, it is unfair to label Chappell as a cog in the gearbox without pointing out the state's hunger for domestic violence matching funds paid by the Fed. Iowa has Chapter 236 which is the state's domestic violence law that clamps down on young fathers and results in orders giving everything to young mothers. Chappell is prohibited by judicial canons from interfering in the settlement of these cases, but without settlement, the young father is left homeless and penniless. Chappell's hands are always tied. To fault Chappell is to accuse him of blindly applying Chapter 236 and other mother-favoring laws without ever looking into any facts of the case. Chappell has an easy out by enforcing the statute blindly as the statute allows him to do. Chappell cannot be counted on to realize that a savvy mother can lie on a 236 petition and win everything in a follow-on divorce action. Chappell cannot realize the totality of facts involving a family that can identify the lying mother. He does not have to. The statute makes it simple, and that is the problem men face in Chappell's courtroom. Criminal Defense Lawyer - (6/2/2023 8:25:09 AM)

Hon. Paul D. Miller (Johnson) This judge is the quintessential apparatchik: custody to mother, money to mother, house to mother, and to the devil with the father. No law is needed as Miller sides with the mother. Miller is steeped in a slurry of regulations involving custody, child support, spousal distribution of marital assets and domestic violence. These rules govern that the victim always wins in Miller's court. Otherwise, this is a scholarly gentleman whose demeanor is pristine. He no doubt has significant experience on the bench and deserves the respect he gets. However, as a tool of the legislature's zeal to wipe out young fathers and put them in their place, Miller is creating a homogenized society of male losers who one day will rise to retaliate. Civil Litigation - Private - (6/2/2023 8:07:46 AM)

Hon. Robert E. Sosalla (Linn) When someone gets a 3rd offense OWI, driving while license is suspended and failure to maintain control (that included totaling a car) and this judge agrees to a plea deal where this person serves 30 days in jail, Judge Sosalla has failed us and our public safety. The lesser 2 charges were thrown out and the minimum jail time was issued for a habitual criminal and convicted felon. Pathetic! Other - (5/28/2023 10:20:41 AM)

Hon. Emily Dean (Lee (South)) Lacking respect for families, does not hear all sides to cases, makes judgements on hear-say, does not know the dynamics of her cases and is partial to sides and is not bias or open minded. She has often made her mind up before a case even begin's. She allows Ad-Litems and DHS to over power her decisions. This Judge has not one ounce of compassion, nor the understanding of addiction in families. She has her own bia's that effects her ability to over see addiction cases. She lacks fortitude & direction. She shortens cases, adding several steps into one, she moves on without the client understanding what is happening, she does not keep her word, such as stating we will go back to that & re-visit it. DHS, Ad-Litem & Judge Dean were asked if the child could be placed with biological family before a CINA was filed, in the way beginning. All stated there was no need as this is a reunification with parents. Litigant - (5/3/2023 8:48:53 AM)

Hon. Scott D. Rosenberg (Polk) Judge Rosenberg is not consistent or reasonable in his rulings. I call into question his mental competence, esp. after his cancer treatment, and his grasp of the complexity of various trial items is poor and frustrating. His short fused temper is also very difficult to work with and he has a short memory for recently stated items. He should be removed from being a judge. Criminal Defense Lawyer - (11/9/2022 10:25:58 AM)

Hon. Greg W. Steensland (Pottawatttamie) clearly Biased and Far from impartial. No adherence to procedural deadlines, no willingness for explaining his ruling as he knows it was a slanted biased quick judgement. All indications point to zero review of respondents submissions. ruling is non defendable from any angle. Judge ignored the entirety of the "ONTIME" one parties files... judgment favored all the "Last Minute" submissions after ruling without cause for the "Late" plaintiff Judge refused to explain his reasoning simply pushing down the line to mediation under a lopsided unexplained advantage he gave to the petitioner. Mediation will not be effective now that the playing field is all advantage to petitioner allowing them the ability to not concede anything mediation, since the judge already gave them everything. No incentive for them to cooperate. they've been rewarded for being late, lying on official documents and making slanderous unfounded accusations in hearings. Other - (10/26/2022 3:31:36 PM)

Hon. David M. Porter (Polk) Sentenced a teenage trafficking victim for killing her rapist. 5 years probation, a hanging threat of prison, $150k restitution to her rapist's family. "The judge peppered Lewis with repeated requests to explain what poor choices she made that led up to Brooks’ stabbing and expressed concern that she sometimes did not want to follow rules set for her in juvenile lockup." Utterly thoughtless, callous evil. Other - (9/14/2022 5:16:53 PM)