Plea change hearing for Garner man accused of kidnapping in Mason City delayed

MASON CITY — There’s a delay in a plea change hearing for a Garner man charged with kidnapping earlier this year in Mason City.

60-year-old Blair Greiman was charged with second-degree kidnapping while armed with a dangerous weapon, a Class B felony punishable by up to 25 years in prison.

A criminal complaint filed by Mason City police says at about 1:15 on the afternoon of April 30th, Greiman allegedly approached a 20-year-old female from behind while she was loading groceries in her vehicle in the Aldi grocery store parking lot. The complaint says Greiman pulled out a handgun and shoved it into the victim’s stomach, telling her she was being abducted and demanded she come with him. As Greiman started escorting the victim to his vehicle, she fought him off and was able to run to a bystander. Greiman then fled the scene, discarding an air soft handgun and handcuffs in a nearby dumpster.

Greiman’s attorney filed a motion a month ago for a plea change hearing to be held on September 29th. That was delayed to next Monday as both prosecutors and the defense requested additional time to resolve discovery questions raised. A new order filed on Thursday afternoon in Cerro Gordo County District Court by District Judge Rustin Davenport says both sides have informed him that they are not ready to proceed to a plea change hearing at this time, and he rescheduled pre-trial conference and jury trial dates on the court calendar for November 4th and November 18th.

Greiman had previously been convicted by a Cerro Gordo County jury of first-degree kidnapping, second-degree sexual abuse and attempted murder. He was 16 when he attacked an 18-year-old woman in the K-Mart parking lot in Mason City. He was sentenced to life in prison, but was eventually granted parole in September 2017 after the United States Supreme Court ruled in 2010 that life sentences without the opportunity for parole for juveniles was unconstitutional.