Mason City man scheduled to be sentenced today for second-degree murder

MASON CITY — A Mason City man who entered an Alford plea after being accused of murder and arson is scheduled to be sentenced this morning.

29-year-old Dominick Degner was charged with first-degree murder and second-degree arson in the September 7th 2021 death of 24-year-old Tonette Wolfe. Wolfe was found dead in the burned-out home the two shared at 123 North Tennessee Avenue. A criminal complaint filed in Cerro Gordo County District Court says Degner caused multiple fatal injuries to Wolfe and then set fire to the victim’s body and the house in an attempt to conceal the crime.

Degner a week before his trial was scheduled to start entered an Alford plea to one count of second-degree murder, a Class B forcible felony that carries a maximum 50-year prison term with the possibility of parole.

With an Alford plea, a person does not admit guilt but acknowledges there is enough evidence for a likely conviction.