Criminal Justice

passed both · Iowa · Senate Apr 29, 2025

SJR 9: A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the State of Iowa relating to the right of an accused to confront children and other witnesses.

SJR 9 proposes adding a new section to the Iowa Constitution to protect children under 18 and witnesses with mental illnesses, intellectual disabilities, or developmental disabilities. It would allow future laws to limit an accused person's right to confront these specific witnesses during legal proceedings. The amendment requires voter approval after being referred to the general assembly for the next election. This is a proposed constitutional change, not an enacted law, and would enable state lawmakers to create procedures for handling testimony from vulnerable witnesses.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeAllows limiting defendant's right to confront vulnerable witnesses, directly reducing a core criminal procedure right per bill's explicit language.95% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

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passed · Iowa · Senate Apr 18, 2025

SF 625: A bill for an act relating to gambling regulation, including enforcement, license fees, tax rates, and the use of associated revenue, making appropriations, and including effective date provisions.

SF 625 modifies Iowa's gambling tax revenue allocation. It directs $8 million annually from sports wagering receipts to the public safety equipment fund starting July 1, 2026, for enforcement activities like boat and racetrack inspections. The bill also establishes a gaming enforcement revolving fund to cover direct costs for criminal investigation agents, adjusts regulatory fees based on prior-year unspent funds, and creates an Iowa horse racing fund to distribute tax revenue from simulcast horse races to counties and the commission. These changes affect gambling licensees through fee adjustments and ensure specific tax revenues fund public safety and horse racing operations.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesBill directs $8M annually from gambling taxes to public safety equipment fund and creates new funds for enforcement/horse racing, increasing targeted government spending.95% confidence ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeBill allocates $8M annually to public safety equipment fund for enforcement activities (including criminal investigation agents), directly funding law enforcement within criminal justice.90% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

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signed · Iowa · Senate Apr 18, 2025

SF 397: A bill for an act relating to assaults, including assaults on persons engaged in certain occupations and inmate assaults on department of corrections employees, and providing penalties.

This bill increases penalties for individuals who commit assaults against specific professionals, including peace officers, correctional staff, healthcare providers, firefighters, and certain state employees. It upgrades assaults intended to inflict serious injury or involving a dangerous weapon from a Class D to a Class C felony. Additionally, assaults causing bodily injury or mental illness against these professionals are elevated from an aggravated misdemeanor to a Class D felony. Other assaults, such as those causing contact with saliva, are reclassified from a serious to an aggravated misdemeanor, and carry a mandatory minimum 7-day jail sentence that cannot be suspended.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeBill increases penalties for assaults on law enforcement and correctional staff, strengthening protections for criminal justice workers.90% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill strengthens protections for healthcare providers by increasing penalties for assaults against them, thereby safeguarding medical professionals.85% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

signed · Iowa · Senate Apr 18, 2025

SF 266: A bill for an act relating to theft, forgery, and fraud involving a gift card, and providing penalties. Effective date: 07/01/2025.

This bill creates new criminal offenses and penalties specifically targeting theft, forgery, and fraud involving gift cards. It defines various illegal actions, such as acquiring or using gift cards or their redemption information without consent, altering gift cards, or using fraudulent schemes to obtain them. Penalties for these crimes range from serious misdemeanors to Class C felonies, with the severity determined by the monetary value of the gift card or property involved. The bill also allows for the aggregation of values from multiple incidents over a six-month period to determine the appropriate charge, and it will take effect on July 1, 2025.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeBill creates new criminal offenses and penalties for theft, forgery, and fraud involving gift cards, strengthening criminal justice enforcement and protecting victims.90% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

passed · Iowa · Senate Mar 31, 2025

SF 289: A bill for an act relating to invasion of privacy, and making penalties applicable.

SF 289 updates Iowa's invasion of privacy law to specifically address non-consensual recording. It makes it a violation to knowingly view, photograph, or film someone for sexual gratification, or to possess such material without a legitimate reason. The bill directly affects individuals who secretly record others in private settings for sexual purposes. Penalties apply when these actions occur, clarifying the legal consequences for violating privacy in this manner. This law strengthens protections against non-consensual intimate recordings by defining clear prohibited conduct.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeStrengthens privacy protections under criminal law, targeting non-consensual recording as sex crime with penalties, aligning with criminal justice reform goals.95% confidence ✓ TechnologySupports TechnologyBill strengthens data privacy protections by criminalizing non-consensual recording with technology, directly aligning with privacy indicators in the topic description.90% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

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signed · Iowa · House Mar 28, 2025

HF 181: A bill for an act prohibiting open containers of beverages containing tetrahydrocannabinol in the passenger area of motor vehicles on highways, and making penalties applicable.

This bill expands Iowa's existing open container laws to include beverages containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), directly affecting drivers and passengers in motor vehicles on public roads. It prohibits the possession of an open or unsealed container of any beverage with THC in the vehicle's passenger area. This restriction applies regardless of whether the THC beverage is otherwise legal, though such containers may be transported in the trunk or behind the last upright seat if the vehicle lacks a trunk. Violations of this prohibition would be considered a simple misdemeanor, punishable by a scheduled fine.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeBill expands criminalization of THC beverages in vehicles, increasing penalties and restricting lawful possession, which opposes criminal justice reform principles.85% confidence ✗ TransportationOpposes TransportationBill restricts transportation by prohibiting open THC containers in passenger areas of vehicles, limiting driver and passenger mobility options.90% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

signed · Iowa · House Mar 28, 2025

HF 298: A bill for an act relating to the placement of a child who is the subject of a pending delinquency petition in a supervised apartment living arrangement pursuant to a consent decree, and the circumstances under which the placement is paid by the state.

HF 298 allows youth involved in juvenile court cases (delinquency petitions) to be placed in supervised apartment living arrangements under a consent decree, rather than traditional facilities. The bill specifies when the state must cover the cost of these placements for eligible youth. It directly affects minors in the juvenile justice system and their legal representatives by creating a new placement option with clear state funding requirements. The law establishes that state payment applies when the placement is part of a court-approved consent decree. This changes how juvenile justice cases handle housing for youth awaiting court decisions.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeProvides community-based juvenile justice alternative with state funding, reducing institutional placements and aligning with reform goals of rehabilitation over confinement.92% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

signed · Iowa · House Mar 28, 2025

HF 180: A bill for an act relating to the criminal offense of grooming and the sex offender registry, and making penalties applicable.

This bill enhances penalties for the criminal offense of grooming. It mandates that individuals convicted of grooming, which is a Class D felony, must register as a Tier I sex offender. Additionally, persons convicted of grooming will receive a special sentence, including 10 years in the custody of the Iowa Department of Corrections with parole eligibility, and must register as a sex offender for 10 years upon their release. This bill directly affects individuals convicted of grooming by imposing these specific registration and sentencing requirements.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeBill increases mandatory sentences and expands criminalization by requiring sex offender registration for grooming convictions.90% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

passed · Iowa · Senate Mar 24, 2025

SF 571: A bill for an act relating to defense subpoenas in criminal cases, and providing penalties.

SF 571 requires criminal defendants to seek court approval before obtaining subpoenas for documents or evidence, rather than issuing them directly. To get approval, defendants must prove a compelling need for evidence that is exculpatory (could prove innocence), material, necessary, and admissible at trial, while avoiding private information of crime victims or others. The bill mandates that subpoenaed documents must be shared with prosecutors within five business days, prohibits using noncompliant evidence in court, and requires courts to appoint attorneys for indigent individuals served with subpoenas. It also establishes penalties for attorneys who violate these rules and bars postconviction claims based on improperly obtained subpoena evidence.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeRestricts defendant access to evidence by requiring court approval and compelling need proof, reducing exculpatory evidence availability.85% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

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passed · Iowa · Senate Mar 20, 2025

SF 393: A bill for an act relating to discovery and postconviction procedure.

SF 393 amends Iowa's postconviction procedure to strictly limit discovery (the exchange of evidence between parties). It directly affects individuals seeking postconviction relief (applicants), victims of the underlying crime, and their attorneys. Key provisions require courts to approve discovery only if it is necessary for a valid claim, protects victims' privacy by mandating "clear and convincing evidence" for victim-related discovery, and prohibits unreasonable invasion of personal information. The bill ensures discovery aligns with privacy expectations and reduces burdens on victims while maintaining access to essential evidence for applicants.

Topics ✗ Criminal JusticeOpposes Criminal JusticeBill strictly limits discovery in postconviction proceedings, reducing defendant rights and making it harder to challenge convictions, directly restricting defendant access to evidence.90% confidence | Rep's Stance Voted absent

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