Ember's Law

Ember's Law (House File 2348) makes Iowa the final state in the United States to classify intentional animal torture as a felony on the first offense. Signed into law by Governor Kim Reynolds on May 11, 2026, at the Animal Rescue League of Iowa in Des Moines, the law closes a decades-long gap in Iowa's criminal code and sends a clear message that the deliberate, malicious infliction of pain on a companion animal is a serious crime.

The law was named "Ember's Law" at the bill signing to honor Ember, a puppy who arrived at the Animal Rescue League of Iowa as an eight-week-old with a broken leg, a broken jaw, and a severely injured eye after being abused by a Des Moines man. Ember attended the signing ceremony and became the face of a reform effort that advocates had pursued for nearly 40 years.

Before this law, Iowa was the only state in the country where extreme animal cruelty was not automatically a felony on the first offense. Animal torture was previously classified as a serious misdemeanor, meaning offenders typically faced no prison time. The new law changes that entirely.

• Elevates animal torture from a serious misdemeanor to a Class D felony on the first offense, punishable by up to five years in prison and fines exceeding $10,000
• Defines animal torture as intentionally, willfully, and maliciously mutilating, burning, poisoning, drowning, starving, or causing intensive or prolonged pain or death to a companion animal
• Elevates the offense to a Class C felony for repeat offenders previously convicted of animal abuse, animal neglect, animal torture, bestiality, injury to a police service dog, or involvement in animal fighting
• Applies specifically to companion animals and does not affect livestock or agricultural practices
• Takes effect on July 1, 2026

Ember arrived at the Animal Rescue League of Iowa as an eight-week-old puppy after being abused by a Des Moines man. She had a broken leg, a broken jaw, and a severely injured eye. ARL CEO Tom Colvin described her condition plainly: "This poor puppy was tortured."

Despite her injuries, Ember survived and recovered under the care of ARL staff. She attended the bill signing ceremony on May 11, 2026, where lawmakers and advocates gathered to mark the end of Iowa's status as the last state in the nation without a felony-level animal cruelty law. Her presence at the signing made the law's purpose impossible to ignore.

The Animal Rescue League of Iowa had been working to pass felony-level animal cruelty legislation for 40 years. The most recent push, led in part by Humane World for Animals and a broad coalition of animal welfare groups, law enforcement associations, veterinarians, and domestic violence advocates, required years of grassroots organizing, lobbying, media campaigns, and direct constituent pressure on state legislators.

The bill passed the Iowa House unanimously early in the 2026 session. It then stalled in the Senate, where a small group of legislators held up the bill despite overwhelming public and bipartisan support. Advocates responded with one of the largest Humane Lobby Days in Iowa history, bringing 75 advocates to the Capitol, flooding the Senate switchboard, and running targeted media and digital campaigns that kept the issue visible even on screens inside the Statehouse.

In the final week of Iowa's legislative session, the Senate passed the bill unanimously. The House concurred unanimously the following day. Governor Reynolds signed it into law on May 11, 2026.

Animal abuse is not an isolated crime. FBI data and decades of research show that individuals who commit acts of violence against animals are significantly more likely to also commit violence against people. Among women who are victims of domestic violence, 84 percent report that their abusers also harmed their animals. ARL CEO Tom Colvin stated it directly at the signing: "People that will do this to an animal are very likely to do this to a human. We are not just helping animals, but people as well."

Iowa's previous misdemeanor classification sent the wrong message: that torturing a companion animal was a minor offense with minor consequences. Ember's Law corrects that. By making animal torture a felony, Iowa joins every other state in the country in treating extreme cruelty to animals with the seriousness it deserves and in recognizing the documented link between animal abuse and violence against people.

Governor Reynolds described the law as common sense: "This is about cracking down on intentional, willful, and malicious infliction of pain or prolonged death on animals. Horrible acts of violence that are evil in their own right and linked to crimes against people."