Senate Joint Resolution 5 - Introduced





                                 SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION       
                                 BY  COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

                                 (SUCCESSOR TO SSB 1081)


    Passed Senate, Date               Passed House,  Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION

  1 A Joint Resolution proposing an amendment to the Constitution of
  2    the State of Iowa eliminating a requirement that a criminal
  3    offense, where the maximum permissible penalty does not exceed
  4    thirty days of imprisonment, be prosecuted on information
  5    under oath.
  6 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  7 TLSB 1356SV 83
  8 jm/rj/5

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  The following amendment to the Constitution of
  1  2 the State of Iowa is proposed:
  1  3    1.  Section 11, unnumbered paragraph 1, of Article 1 of the
  1  4 Constitution of the State of Iowa, is amended to read as
  1  5 follows:
  1  6    All offenses less than felony and in which imprisonment is
  1  7 permitted by law and the maximum permissible imprisonment does
  1  8 not exceed thirty days shall be tried summarily before an
  1  9 officer authorized by law, on information under oath, without
  1 10 indictment, or the intervention of a grand jury, saving to the
  1 11 defendant the right of appeal; and no person shall be held to
  1 12 answer for any higher criminal offense, unless on presentment
  1 13 or indictment by a grand jury, except in cases arising in the
  1 14 army, or navy, or in the militia, when in actual service, in
  1 15 time of war or public danger.
  1 16    2.  Section 11 of Article I of the Constitution of the
  1 17 State of Iowa is amended by adding the following new
  1 18 unnumbered paragraph after unnumbered paragraph 1:
  1 19    All offenses less than a felony and in which imprisonment
  1 20 is not permitted by law shall be tried summarily before an
  1 21 officer authorized by law, on information certified under
  1 22 penalty of perjury, without indictment, or the intervention of
  1 23 a grand jury, saving to the defendant the right of appeal.
  1 24    Sec. 2.  REFERRAL AND PUBLICATION.  The foregoing proposed
  1 25 amendment to the Constitution of the State of Iowa is referred
  1 26 to the General Assembly to be chosen at the next general
  1 27 election for members of the General Assembly, and the
  1 28 Secretary of State is directed to cause the proposed amendment
  1 29 to be published for three consecutive months previous to the
  1 30 date of that election as provided by law.
  1 31                           EXPLANATION
  1 32    This joint resolution proposes an amendment to the
  1 33 Constitution of the State of Iowa eliminating requirements
  1 34 that a criminal offense where imprisonment is not permitted by
  1 35 law be prosecuted on information under oath.
  2  1    The resolution effectively permits most simple misdemeanors
  2  2 punishable as a scheduled violation to be prosecuted on
  2  3 information that is certified under penalty of perjury rather
  2  4 than under oath.
  2  5    The resolution is in response to an Iowa supreme court
  2  6 case, City of Cedar Rapids v. Atsinger, 617 N.W.2d 272(2000).
  2  7    The resolution, if adopted, would be referred to the
  2  8 Eighty=fourth General Assembly for adoption, before being
  2  9 submitted to the electorate for ratification.
  2 10 LSB 1356SV 83
  2 11 jm/rj/5.1