Defendant in Mill Street stabbing case takes plea deal

By Seth Boyes,

A Decorah man arrested following a late July stabbing has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge. 

Court records show 37-year-old Alfredo Morales Hernandez’s attorney filed documents for his client earlier this month, pleading guilty to a Class D felony of willful injury causing bodily injury — Morales Hernandez was originally charged with a Class C felony of willful injury causing serious injury. 

The court accepted the plea agreement the same day, suspending a $1,025 fine and sentencing the 37-year-old to a term of no more than five years in prison. Information from the Iowa Department of Corrections shows Morales
Hernandez was committed to the Iowa Medical and Classification Center as of Oct. 9. He is to be given credit for 70 days already served in the Winneshiek County Jail, according to court documents, and he is tentatively scheduled for release Nov. 8, 2026. 

Morales Hernandez admitted in this month’s court filings to stabbing 56-year-old Jose Maria Cortez Vertiz the evening of July 31 at their shared residence in the 600 block of South Mill Street in Decorah. Morales Hernandez’s attorney had previously filed a Sept. 19 notice, informing the court his client intended to rely on a claim of self-defense, after initially pleading not guilty to the original charge in an Aug. 20 filing.

Full article available in the October 17 Decorah Leader.

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