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IN THE SUPREME COURT OF IOWA No. 89 / 05-0621 Filed September 22, 2006 STATE OF IOWA, Appellee, vs. WILLIAM BASINGER, FRANK CORDARO, CARLA DAWSON, GILBERT DAWES, JEANNE FIRTH, FRAN FULLER, JAMES JOHNSON, JANE MAGERS, MICHAEL SCHORSCH, MARIAN SOLOMAN, BRIAN TERRELL, CAROLYN WALKER, and ELTON DAVIS, Appellants.

Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Robert A. Hutchison, Judge.

Defendants appeal taxation of jury and court reporter fees. AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND CASE REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS.

Sally Frank, Drake University Legal Clinic, Des Moines, and Judie Levy, Student Legal Intern, for appellants Basinger, Cordaro, Dawson, Dawes, Firth, Fuller, Johnson, Magers, Schorsch, Soloman, Terrell and Walker.

Tara Elcock, Des Moines, for appellant Davis.

Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Darrel Mullins, Assistant Attorney General, John P. Sarcone, County Attorney, Olubunmi Salami,

2 Assistant County Attorney, and Tanya Fawcett, Student Legal Intern, for appellee.

3 LAVORATO, Chief Justice. In this appeal, we are asked to determine whether the clerk of the district court correctly taxed each jointly tried defendant convicted of a simple misdemeanor a jury fee of $100 pursuant to Iowa Code section 625.8(1) (2003) and a court reporter fee of $15 per day pursuant to Iowa Code section 625.8(2). We conclude the clerk correctly taxed the jury and court reporter fee to each nonindigent defendant. However, because of Iowa Rule of Criminal Procedure 2.67(9), the clerk incorrectly taxed the court reporter fee to the indigent defendants. Accordingly, we affirm in part and reverse in part the judgment of the district court and remand the case for a correct entry of costs. I. Background Facts and Proceedings. On March 22, 2003, a number of individuals gathered across the street from the STARC Armory in Johnston, Iowa to protest the war in Iraq. A security officer with the Amory warned the protestors that they would be arrested for trespass if they crossed a tar line on the road. Disregarding the warning, the protestors crossed the line. They also disregarded the officer's warning that if they did not leave they would be arrested. Later that day, William Basinger, Frank Cordaro, Elton Davis, Carla Dawson, Gilbert Dawes, Jeanne Firth, Fran Fuller, James Johnson, Jane Magers, Michael Schorsch, Marian Soloman, Brian Terrell, and Carolyn Walker (the defendants) were arrested and charged with trespass, a simple misdemeanor, in violation of Iowa Code sections 716.7(2)(b) and 716.8(1). Dawson was arrested later than the others. She had crossed the tar line to take pictures of the group, was told she would be arrested if she did not leave, and did not leave after being warned. The defendants pleaded not guilty and made a jury demand. The defendants were jointly tried, and a jury found each defendant guilty of the

4 charge. Later, the district court imposed the following sentence on each defendant: $50 fine (pursuant to Iowa Code section 903.1(1)(a)), 30%

criminal penalty surcharge (pursuant to Iowa Code sections 903.1(4) and 911.2), $125 law enforcement initiative surcharge (pursuant to Iowa Code section 911.3(1)(a)), and court costs. In addition, the defendants were each taxed as costs the full amount of the court reporter fee and the jury fee; those fees were not apportioned among the defendants. The defendants appealed to the district court, which affirmed each conviction. The court concluded no errors were committed by the clerk in taxing the costs to the defendants. In so concluding, the court noted that each defendant was given a file and unique case number, the cases could have been tried individually, and a separate finding of guilt was entered for each of the defendants. As to the court reporter fee, the court noted that it could not find anything in the record that showed only two indigent defendants requested a transcript. The court concluded that because none of the defendants opted out of the trial with a court reporter, court reporter fees were properly taxed to each defendant. We granted the defendants' application for discretionary review. See Iowa R. App. P. 6.201-6.203 (rules governing discretionary review). II. Issues. The defendants raise the question whether jointly tried defendants should each be taxed the full amount of the jury and court reporter fees. Additionally, the defendants raise the question whether all defendants should have been taxed the full court reporter fees when, according to the defendants, only indigent defendants requested a court reporter.

5 III. Scope of Review. Because resolution of the issues raised turns on interpretation of statutes, our review is for correction of errors at law. Hansen v. Cent. Iowa Hosp. Corp., 686 N.W.2d 476, 479 (Iowa 2004). IV. Taxation of Jury and Court Reporter Fees. Iowa Code section 625.8(1) provides that "[t]he clerk of the district court shall tax as a court cost a jury fee of one hundred dollars in every action tried to a jury." Iowa Code section 625.8(2) provides that "[t]he clerk of the district court shall tax as a court cost a fee of fifteen dollars per day for the services of a court reporter." The clerk of the district court taxed each defendant $100 as a jury fee and $150 as a court reporter fee. (Because a court reporter was needed for the eight-day trial and two additional hearings, the court reporter fee amounted to $150.) The defendants contend the clerk should have apportioned the $100 jury fee among the thirteen defendants requiring each defendant to pay 1/13 of the fee or $7.69. The defendants contend that the clerk should also have apportioned the $150 court reporter fee among the thirteen defendants requiring each defendant to pay 1/13 of the fee or $11.54. Not surprisingly, the State disagrees. The State notes that the words "every action" in the jury fee statute supports the district court's ruling that the clerk committed no error in taxing a jury fee of $100 against each defendant. See Iowa Code

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