MISDEMEANORS

Iowa Code tit. XVI, ch. 903

in effect

Iowa Code § 903.1 Maximum sentence for misdemeanants.

903.1. Maximum sentence for misdemeanants. 1. If a person eighteen years of age or older is convicted of a simple or serious misdemeanor and a specific penalty is not provided for or if a person under eighteen years of age has been waived to adult court pursuant to section 232.45 on a felony charge and is subsequently convicted of a simple, serious, or aggravated misdemeanor, the court shall determine the sentence, and shall fix the period of confinement or the amount of fine, which fine shall not be suspended by the court, within the following limits: a. For a simple misdemeanor, there shall be a fine of at least one hundred five dollars but not to exceed eight hundred fifty-five dollars. The court may order imprisonment not to exceed thirty days in lieu of a fine or in addition to a fine. b. For a serious misdemeanor, there shall be a fine of at least four hundred thirty dollars but not to exceed two thousand five hundred sixty dollars. In addition, the court may also order imprisonment not to exceed one year. 2. When a person is convicted of an aggravated misdemeanor, and a specific penalty is not provided for, the maximum penalty shall be imprisonment not to exceed two years. There shall be a fine of at least eight hundred fifty-five dollars but not to exceed eight thousand five hundred forty dollars. When a judgment of conviction of an aggravated misdemeanor is entered against any person and the court imposes a sentence of confinement for a period of more than one year the term shall be an indeterminate term. 3. A person under eighteen years of age convicted of a simple misdemeanor under chapter 321, 321G, 321I, 453A, 461A, 461B, 462A, 481A, 481B, 483A, 484A, or 484B, or a violation of a county or municipal curfew or traffic ordinance, except for an offense subject to section 805.8, may be required to pay a fine, not to exceed one hundred dollars, as fixed by the court, or may be required to perform community service as ordered by the court. 4. The surcharges required by sections 911.1, 911.2A, and 911.5 shall be added to a fine imposed on a misdemeanant as provided in those sections, and are not a part of or subject to the maximums set in this section. [C51, §2676; R60, §4303; C73, §3967; C97, §4906; C24, 27, 31, 35, 39, §12894; C46, 50, 54, 58, 62, 66, 71, 73, 75, 77, §687.7; C79, 81, §903.1] 83 Acts, ch 183, §2, 3; 84 Acts, ch 1219, §39; 87 Acts, ch 149, §7; 88 Acts, ch 1158, §100; 88 Acts, ch 1167, §8, 9; 90 Acts, ch 1251, §66; 91 Acts, ch 240, §10; 92 Acts, ch 1160, §25; 93 Acts, ch 110, §10; 99 Acts, ch 153, §24; 2001 Acts, ch 168, §5; 2004 Acts, ch 1111, §8; 2004 Acts, ch 1119, §7; 2004 Acts, ch 1132, §95; 2006 Acts, ch 1166, §10, 11; 2014 Acts, ch 1097, §13; 2020 Acts, ch 1074, §17, 46, 93 See also §701.8 Enhanced penalties in weapons free zones, see §724.4A Fines, see chapter 909 Surcharge on penalty, chapter 911

Iowa Code § 903.2 Reconsideration of misdemeanant’s sentence.

903.2. Reconsideration of misdemeanant’s sentence. For a period of thirty days from the date when a person convicted of a misdemeanor begins to serve a sentence of confinement, the court may order the person to be returned to the court, at which time the court may review its previous action and reaffirm it or substitute for it any sentence permitted by law. The sentencing court retains jurisdiction for the limited purposes of conducting such review and entering an appropriate order notwithstanding the timely filing of a notice of appeal or an application for discretionary review. The court’s final order in the proceeding shall be delivered to the defendant personally or by regular mail. Such action is discretionary with the court and its decision to take the action or not to take the action is not subject to appeal. The other provisions of this section notwithstanding, for the purposes of appeal a judgment of conviction is a final judgment when pronounced. [C79, 81, §903.2] 84 Acts, ch 1139, §2; 2003 Acts, ch 151, §60

Iowa Code § 903.3 Work release.

903.3. Work release. The court may direct that a prisoner sentenced to confinement in a county jail, alternate jail facility, or community correctional residential treatment facility, be released from custody during specified hours, as provided by sections 356.26 through 356.35. [C79, 81, §903.3] 83 Acts, ch 39, §1; 2021 Acts, ch 80, §376

Iowa Code § 903.4 Providing place of confinement.

903.4. Providing place of confinement. All persons sentenced to confinement for a period of one year or less shall be confined in a place to be furnished by the county where the conviction was had unless the person is presently committed to the custody of the director of the Iowa department of corrections, in which case the provisions of section 901.8 apply. All persons sentenced to confinement for a period of more than one year shall be committed to the custody of the director of the Iowa department of corrections to be confined in a place to be designated by the director and the cost of the confinement shall be borne by the state. The director may contract with local governmental units for the use of detention or correctional facilities maintained by the units for the confinement of such persons. [C79, 81, §903.4] 83 Acts, ch 96, §133, 159; 2001 Acts, ch 165, §6; 2003 Acts, ch 156, §13

Iowa Code § 903.5 Local facilities preferred for misdemeanants.

903.5. Local facilities preferred for misdemeanants. In designating places of confinement of misdemeanants, the department shall make optimum use of local facilities offering correctional programs, where such are available. Where a choice of facilities is offered, a choice of the facility nearest the prisoner’s home shall be preferred, if such choice is compatible with the rehabilitation of the prisoner. [C79, 81, §903.5]

Iowa Code § 903.6 Segregation of prisoners.

903.6. Segregation of prisoners. In any detention facility, persons who are serving a sentence of confinement shall be segregated from persons who are being detained for any other purpose, whenever such is possible. [C79, 81, §903.6]

Source: Iowa Legislature (legis.iowa.gov)URL: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/law/iowaCode/sections?codeChapter=903&year=2026Fetched: 10/20/2026