On several occasions, the latest being March 27, 2019, we blogged about the Iowa “ag gag” law, which made it a criminal offense for persons to use false representations to gain access to farms and ranches for the purpose of exposing animal rights abuses. The District Court in Iowa held that the statute violated the First Amendment.
The Iowa legislature has now amended the statute in an effort to avoid the constitutional issue. The original statute prohibited false representations for the purpose of gaining access to or employment at a farm or ranch; it did not require any actual harm to the farmer/rancher. The amended statute prohibits deception for such purposes “with the intent to cause physical or economic harm or other injury” to the facility or its owners. The Animal Legal...
