Ankeny Man Convicted of Murder Out of Jail Awaiting New Trial

An Ankeny man convicted of hiring a man to kill the man who had an affair with his wife is out of jail while awaiting a new trial on the murder charge, according to the Des Moines Register.

Vernon Lee Huser, 65, was convicted of first-degree murder in 2010 for paying Louis Woolheater to kill Lance Morningstar, who’d had an affair with Huser’s wife. The Iowa Court of Appeals in December ordered a new trial, ruling that Huser’s lawyer had failed to object to hearsay testimony that could have tipped the balance with jurors, the Register reported.

Huser, who had been serving life at the Iowa state prison in Anamosa, was moved to the Polk County Jail last month, the paper said. The new trial currently is scheduled for June 25.

Huser was released from jail on Tuesday after his attorney posted a $150,000 cash-only bond and certified that it was Huser’s money at stake.

A court order requires that Huser live in his Ankeny home but allows him to spend the night occasionally at his son’s house, the newspaper said.