Iowa Code § 728.12 — IA Code / Title XVI / Chapter 728 / Section 728.12
Sexual exploitation of a minor.
Status: in_force

(1) It shall be unlawful to employ, use, persuade, induce, entice, coerce, solicit, knowingly permit, or otherwise cause or attempt to cause a minor or a law enforcement officer or agent posing as a minor to engage in a prohibited sexual act or in the simulation of a prohibited sexual act. A person must know, or have reason to know, or intend that the act or simulated act may be photographed, filmed, or otherwise preserved in a visual depiction. A person who commits a violation of this subsection commits a class “B” felony. Notwithstanding section 902.9, the court may assess a fine of not more than fifty thousand dollars for each offense under this subsection in addition to imposing any other authorized sentence.

(2) It shall be unlawful to knowingly promote any material visually depicting a live performance of a minor engaging in a prohibited sexual act or in the simulation of a prohibited sexual act. A person who commits a violation of this subsection commits a class “C” felony. Notwithstanding section 902.9, the court may assess a fine of not more than twenty-five thousand dollars for each offense under this subsection in addition to imposing any other authorized sentence.

(3) (a) It shall be unlawful to knowingly purchase or possess a visual depiction of a minor engaging in a prohibited sexual act or the simulation of a prohibited sexual act.

(3) (b) A visual depiction containing pictorial representations of different minors shall be prosecuted and punished as separate offenses for each pictorial representation of a different minor in the visual depiction.

(3) (b) Violations of this subsection involving multiple visual depictions of the same minor shall be prosecuted and punished as separate offenses for each pictorial representation of the same minor.

(3) (c) A person who commits a violation of this subsection commits a class “D” felony for a first offense and a class “C” felony for a second or subsequent offense.

(3) (d) For purposes of this subsection, an offense is considered a second or subsequent offense if, prior to the person’s having been convicted under this subsection, the person has a prior conviction or deferred judgment under this subsection or has a prior conviction or deferred judgment in another jurisdiction for a substantially similar offense. The court shall judicially notice the statutes of other states that define offenses substantially similar to the offenses defined in this subsection and that therefore can be considered corresponding statutes.

(3) (e) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require proof of the actual identity of the identifiable minor.

(3) (f) For purposes of this subsection, “visual depiction of a minor” includes any visual depiction that has been created, adapted, or modified to give the appearance that an identifiable minor is engaged in a prohibited sexual act or the simulation of a prohibited sexual act. An “identifiable minor” is a person who was a minor at the time the visual depiction was created, adapted, or modified, or whose image as a minor was used in creating, adapting, or modifying the visual depiction and is recognizable as an actual person by the person’s face, likeness, or other distinguishing features.

(4) This section does not apply to law enforcement officers, court personnel, licensed physicians, licensed psychologists, or attorneys in the performance of their official duties.

[C79, 81, §728.12]83 Acts, ch 167, §4; 86 Acts, ch 1176, §1 – 3; 89 Acts, ch 263, §3; 2001 Acts, ch 17, §4; 2003 Acts, ch 65, §1, 2; 2012 Acts, ch 1057, §7, 8; 2023 Acts, ch 74, §2; 2024 Acts, ch 1015, §1; 2025 Acts, ch 50, §1