The State of Iowa is being sued by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and other non-governmental organizations (NGOs) who allege the state's ag-gag law violates people’s constitutional rights.
The law in question, Iowa Code 717A.3A, makes it unlawful for a person to obtain access to an agricultural production facility by false pretenses. It also makes it illegal for a person to knowingly make a false statement or representation as part of an application or agreement to be employed at an agricultural production facility with the intent to knowingly commit an act not authorized by the owner.
Violation of the law on the first offense is deemed a serious misdemeanor, while a second conviction is deemed an aggravated misdemeanor.
The law also makes it unlawful to conspire to enter or gain employment at agricultural operations under false pretenses.
In a blog on the PETA website, the organization is being joined in the lawsuit by Animal Legal Defense Fund, the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa, the Center for Food Safety, Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement, the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism–IowaWatch, and Bailing Out Benji.
Rationale for lawsuit
PETA, in its blog, stated: “We brought this lawsuit because the Iowa 'ag-gag' law is a blatant violation of free speech and freedom of the press. It seeks to punish the witnesses who expose illegal and inhumane conduct on factory farms. Iowa should be ashamed that it passed a law to shield the crime of animal abuse.
“The American public has a right to know about the horrific conditions on factory farms. For more than 100 years, investigative accounts of meatpacking plants have been celebrated for raising public awareness and prompting social change. 'Ag-gag' laws seek to punish the whistleblowers who are acting in the public interest and informing the public about the crimes and abuses that occur behind the closed doors of factory farms.”
A similar ag-gag law in Utah was deemed unconstitutional by a federal judge in July.
