Capitol Notebook: Judge dismisses lawsuit against Iowa’s ‘ag-gag’ or ‘ag trespass’ law

DES MOINES — A third and final challenge to Iowa state laws designed to create legal protections for farmers from activists attempting to obtain video of animal mistreatment was dismissed last week by a federal judge.

Friday, Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird lauded the judge’s ruling.

“Farmers should be able to farm without fear of trespassers. That is why Iowa passed important laws to prevent trespassers from lying to get onto a property and hurt it, planting secret recording devices, or filming on the property they trespassed onto,” Bird said in a statement. “I fought to defend those laws that strengthen security for farmers and property owners. We won and protected farmers. Farmers, we have your back.”

According to court documents, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Stephanie M. Rose dismissed the lawsuit on March 19.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement were the last plaintiffs remaining in the lawsuit, which started in 2021 with a state law that created enhanced penalties for individuals who use recording devices while committing a criminal trespass.

The law was designed to protect farmers from activists who might illegally enter a farming operation and record video of how animals on the farm are being treated. A federal judge found the law violated the First Amendment on its face and stopped the law from being enforced; but a federal appeals court vacated that injunction and remanded the case for further proceedings.

Rose last week ruled that the law’s “targeted approach” is within the state’s interests of protecting property rights and privacy. Rose also ruled the state law leaves “ample alternative channels” for plaintiffs — activists — to legally disseminate their message. And Rose ruled that free speech rights granted in the First Amendment do not extend to unlawful conduct.

“Although speakers in public forums deserve robust protection for their chosen methods of communication, the First Amendment has never guaranteed trespassers the right to record while unlawfully present on another’s property,” Rose wrote. “The First Amendment indeed protects the right to gather and disseminate information on matters of public concern, but that protection is qualified when the gathering method involves unlawful conduct, especially when the information could be otherwise obtained lawfully.”

Rose granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss the case.

In January 2024, a federal appeals court also ruled in favor of the state in a case involving a law that made it illegal to lie on an employment form in order to gain access to an agricultural facility — one method activists have used in gaining access to farms.

Gov. Reynolds signs bills into law

Among a batch of bills that Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law Friday was a measure that will place on the registered sex offenders list any individual convicted of the new state crime of grooming.

That bill, House File 180, passed the Iowa House, 87-5, and the Iowa Senate, 48-0.

Reynolds also signed into law House File 181, which adds THC-infused drinks to the state’s open containers law that prohibits alcoholic beverages from being in opened containers in a vehicle. The bill passed the House, 86-1, and the Senate, 48-0.

Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau

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