Change of Venue for Trial of Accused North Iowa Cop Killer

The trial for a north Iowa man, accused of killing a police officer last fall, will get a change of venue.

43-year-old Kyle Ricke of Algona is charged with first-degree murder for allegedly shooting Algona Police Officer Kevin Cram to death on September 13, 2023. Cram was also a member of the Nora Springs Police Department from 2013 to 2015.

Ricke has pleaded not guilty to the Class A felony and was scheduled for trial June 25th in Kossuth County District Court in Algona. However, both the defense and the prosecution agreed that it would be difficult to impanel an impartial jury in Kossuth County.

On Tuesday (05.21), Judge Nancy Whittenberg noted that since “there is no dispute between the parties that there is such a degree of prejudice that there is a substantial likelihood a fair and impartial jury cannot be preserved with a jury selected from Kossuth County and the motion should be sustained.”

She then ruled to approve the change of venue and that the trial be moved to Dickinson County District Court in Spirit Lake. 

There was no indication the trial date would be changed.