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STATE v. FRATZKE

No. 88-1613.

446 N.W.2d 781 (1989)

STATE of Iowa, Appellee, v. William James FRATZKE, Appellant.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

As Corrected October 19, 1989.

Attorney(s) appearing for the Case

Mark E. Schantz and Barbara G. Barrett of Dickinson, Throckmorton, Parker, Mannheimer & Raife, Des Moines, for appellant.

Thomas J. Miller, Atty. Gen., Gordon E. Allen, Deputy Atty. Gen., Roxann M. Ryan, Asst. Atty. Gen., W. Wayne Saur, County Atty., and John Hofmeyer III, Asst. County Atty. for appellee.

Considered by McGIVERIN, C.J., and HARRIS, SCHULTZ, NEUMAN, and SNELL, JJ.

NEUMAN, Justice.

Defendant William Fratzke stands convicted of the crime of harassment, Iowa Code § 708.7(1) (1987), because he wrote a nasty letter to a state highway patrolman to protest a speeding ticket. His argument for reversal of his conviction is both direct and persuasive: Our Constitution does not permit government officials to put their critics, no matter how annoying, in jail. We agree, and reverse the district court.

Following his conviction...

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