Charles City man sentenced to up to 25 years in prison for felony child sex abuse

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

A Charles City man convicted of sexually abusing a young child has been sentenced to up to 25 years in prison.

Charles R. Fisher, 39, was sentenced Monday, March 31, in Floyd County District Court to a prison term for an indeterminate term not to exceed 25 years for second-degree sexual abuse, a Class B felony, and up to 10 years for lascivious acts with a child, a Class C felony.

District Court Judge Chris Foy ordered the charges to run concurrently.

Fisher must serve at least 17½ years on the second degree sexual abuse charge before being eligible for parole, under Iowa law requiring serving at least seven-tenths of the maximum sentence for certain felonies.

Fisher was also ordered to serve what is called the Iowa “Special Sentence” for certain sexual offenses that will keep him under the supervision of the Iowa Department of Corrections for the rest of his life, even after released from custody.

The convictions stem from an incident in June 2023 in which a young child reported being sexually touched by Fisher at his home in Charles City. The child described the abuse in interviews and examinations conducted at the Allen Child Protection Center in Waterloo.

Fisher pleaded not guilty and went to trial in December. A jury deliberated for four hours before returning guilty verdicts on both counts.

Prior to sentencing, defense attorney Joseph Bertogli of Des Moines filed a motion in arrest of judgment and a brief in support of a new trial, arguing that the verdict was not supported by sufficient evidence and that errors during trial deprived Fisher of a fair proceeding, including alleged misconduct by certain jurors.

Among the claims raised by the defense were that the testimony of the child was inconsistent and unreliable, that hearsay statements were improperly admitted into evidence, that the defense was not allowed to submit evidence that could have led to an acquittal, and that the jury was allowed to see evidence that it had not been authorized to see.

At sentencing, Judge Foy “denied all relief sought by defendant in these motions,” then offered Fisher his right to make a statement, which he declined.

Fisher was ordered to pay various court fees and penalties, and was also order to pay a $1,370 fine on the lascivious acts conviction, but that fine was suspended.

Fisher has been transferred from Floyd County Jail to the Iowa Department of Corrections, according to a jail spokesperson.