Iowa Senate advances constitutional amendment on remote testimony
Iowa senators unanimously advanced a resolution to start the process of amending Iowa's constitution to allow remote testimony by child victims and those with certain disabilities. (Photo by simpson33 via iStock / Getty Images Plus)
The Iowa Senate unanimously passed a resolution Wednesday to start the process of amending the state constitution to allow child victims to testify remotely against their alleged abusers.
Senate Joint Resolution 9 is a proposed constitutional amendment stating that the right of an accused party to confront their accuser can be limited by law in situations where a witness is a minor or has a mental illness, intellectual or other development disability.
Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird called for the amendment in response to a 2024 Iowa Supreme Court ruling. In State v. White, the state Supreme Court found that Derek White's constitutional right to confront his accuser was violated when two child witnesses were allowed to testify against him using a closed-circuit television system.
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In subcommittee meetings on the proposed amendment, speakers with the Iowa Attorney General's office said the use of remote testimony through closed-circuit television systems had been in place in Iowa courts for decades, limited to cases where prosecution provided sufficient evidence that testifying in person would cause the child further trauma. With the Supreme Court decision barring this practice, attorney general's office staff said Iowa is the only state in the country does not allow exceptions to the right of a defendant to confront witnesses in cases involving children and people with disabilities.
Sen. Matt Blake, D-Urbandale, spoke in support of the measure, calling it an ' essential fix' for Iowa's judicial system. However, he argued that this constitutional amendment, as well as other bills like a measure on disputed land boundaries passed by Iowa lawmakers earlier Wednesday to counteract decisions from the Iowa Supreme Court, are caused by a politicized court system. He linked the measure to Senate File 407, a bill passed by the Senate Monday that gives the governor the power to appoint an additional member to district judicial nominating commissions in the state, that he said moves the state's judicial system from a 'merit-based system to more an ideological-based system.'
'These are the results that we get, and we have to pass constitutional amendments to make sure that children don't have to face a sexual abuser in court,' Blake said. 'This is what political ideology in our judicial system gets.'
Sen. Dan Dawson, R-Council Bluffs, said he didn't want to 'dignify' Blake's comments with a response and said the focus should instead be on working to 'correct a decision and bring relief to people aforementioned here.'
'I'm not going to take the bait to fall into some petty politics,' he said.
The resolution moves to the House for further consideration. House Joint Resolution 9 is also available for consideration. There are still several steps before the change could be made to Iowa's state constitution. If the resolution is passed by both chambers this year, it must be approved by the Iowa Legislature again in 2027 or 2028 before voters would consider it on the 2028 general election ballot.
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