Iowa Supreme Court · No. 24-0885
Leonard Gregory, Dee J. Radeke, Sean O’Geary, Jerry Newell, John Hrbek, Chad Welsh, Clarence Fenton, Jack Hays, and Joseph Lawrence v. State of Iowa, Iowa State Legislature and Iowa Department of Corrections
Decided June 26, 2026 · appeal from Polk County · Government
What the court decided
AI summary Incarcerated individuals challenged a state law that prevents the Department of Corrections from providing them with commercially published materials that feature nudity. The plaintiffs argued that this restriction violated their constitutional right to free speech. The court affirmed the lower court's decision, meaning the law remains in place and the restrictions on such materials are upheld.1
Result: Affirmed
The court’s own summary
Plaintiffs, who are incarcerated in Iowa’s prison system, appeal from a district court order holding that Iowa Code section 904.310A is facially constitutional. The statute bars funds appropriated to the Iowa Department of Corrections from being “used to distribute or make available any commercially published information or material to an inmate when such information or material . . . features nudity.” Plaintiffs argue that the district court failed to fashion a test sufficiently protective of their free-speech rights under article I, section 7 of the Iowa Constitution. Plaintiffs further argue that the district court abused its discretion in allowing the defendants’ untimely designated and disclosed expert to testify, and they argue that the district court incorrectly limited their claim to printed materials.
Holding: Incarcerated individuals appeal the denial of their constitutional challenges to Iowa Department of Corrections regulations implementing Iowa Code section 904.310A following a bench trial. Affirmed.
Judges
- Written by Justice Dana Oxley
Iowa Code it cites
Each links to the bills that change that chapter.