Cherokee, Iowa (NorthwestIowaNow.com) — A judge has pushed back the trial date for Richard Allen Hammond He is accused of intentionally running over a Sutherland man last year. Hammond was originally set to face a jury this week. But following a scheduling conference on March 3rd, those plans have changed.
Hammond is charged with First-Degree Murder in the April 2025 death of 47-year-old Christopher Wheeler. Prosecutors say Hammond intentionally struck Wheeler with his pickup truck at a rural Cherokee residence.
The delay comes as the State moves to consolidate that murder charge with a separate felony stalking case. Investigators say that while out on bond last summer, Hammond repeatedly violated a no-contact order by driving past the crime scene on a motorcycle—at one point allegedly passing the residence 23 times in just five days.
Because the two cases share the same witnesses and evidence, the court is merging them into one unified trial for ‘judicial economy.’
Hammond remains held in the Cherokee County Jail on a one-million-dollar cash-only bond. His new day in court is now set for September 22nd at 9:30 AM. The trial is expected to last ten days.”
