Gibbs, of Fort Dodge, was convicted of second degree murder in connection with the shooting death of Shane Wesels, 32, of Fort Dodge.

Investigators and prosecutors say Gibbs shot Wessels in the early morning hours of Sept. 3, 2017, near the intersection of 10th Avenue Southwest and 10th Street Southwest.

A Webster County jury found Gibbs guilty of second degree murder on July 27, 2018. District Court Judge Thomas Bice sentenced him to the mandatory 50 years in prison. Gibbs must serve 35 years in prison before being eligible for parole.

Gibbs filed an appeal, but on April 17, 2020, the Iowa Supreme Court upheld the conviction.

The court case which began Thursday in Webster County District Court is a post conviction relief action. It is basically a civil lawsuit targeting a criminal conviction.

In the action, Gibbs is claiming that his defense attorney, Peter Berger, didn’t handle his case properly and thus he was convicted. Lawyers call this ineffective assistance of counsel.

Gibbs was brought from the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison to the Webster County Jail on Tuesday in advance of the hearing.

The first day of the hearing was Thursday before District Court Judge Kurt J. Stoebe, At least one more hearing will be scheduled before Stoebe rules on the matter.