Matthew Davis

A Harcourt man sentenced to up to 30 years in prison for sexual abuse and incest has lost his appeal.

On Wednesday, the Iowa Court of Appeals issued its ruling on the appeal filed by Matthew James Davis, 44, affirming the Webster County jury’s conviction and the 30-year sentence imposed for the offenses.

In his appeal, Davis argued that the trial court abused its discretion when overruling Davis’ objection over certain testimony from his ex-wife, that the verdicts are not supported by sufficient evidence and that the court abused its discretion in imposing consecutive sentences.

Davis was convicted in March 2022 of two counts of third-degree sexual abuse, Class C felonies, and two counts of incest, Class D felonies. Later, Webster County Senior District Court Judge Thomas Bice sentenced Davis to up to 30 years in prison for his crimes, ordering the two 10-year and two five-year sentences be served consecutively to one another.

In the ruling filed on Wednesday, the appeals court found that the evidence provided during the victim’s testimony alone was sufficient to support a guilty verdict, and that the testimony from Davis’ ex-wife was not unduly prejudicial to the defense. The court also found that the consecutive sentences were imposed using proper sentencing considerations.