Sentence for Mason City man who burglarized Dairy Queen upheld by Iowa Court of Appeals

DES MOINES — A Mason City man who pleaded guilty to burglary has lost an appeal of his sentence.

Ryan Allen broke into the Dairy Queen on August 7th of 2021 and attempted to steal cash from the restaurant’s safe. An initial criminal complaint stated that an employee reported for work before the store opened and was confronted inside by Allen who was holding a knife and threatening her. Allen was sentenced to ten years in prison with an order by District Judge Gregg Rosenbladt that 65% of the total sentence needed to be completed before Allen was eligible for parole.

Allen had appealed his sentence, arguing that Rosenbladt sentenced him without a validated risk assessment, an argument the Iowa Court of Appeals agreed with and remanded the case back to district court for resentencing. The district court then imposed the same ten year sentence with a 60% mandatory minimum.

Allen once again appealed, saying the district court erred when it used a risk assessment that considered Allen’s unemployment before incarceration as he was now employed in prison. The Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed the sentence this week, saying the district court exercised proper discretion in considering the risk assessment during sentencing.