Iowa: It is a misdemeanor for someone to "publicly mutilate, deface, defile or defy, trample upon, cast contempt upon, satirize, deride or burlesque, either by words or act" the American flag, the Iowa state flag, or any images or representations thereof."
It is also a crime to place "any word, figure, mark, picture, design, drawing, or any advertisement of any nature" on the national or state flag, to use the flag for advertisements, or put the flag on "any article or substance, being an article of merchandise or a receptacle of merchandise or article or thing for carrying or transporting merchandise."
Penalty: none specified.
Source: 718A.1
Analysis:
Iowa goes further than most states by criminalizing not just defacing and mutilating the American flag, but also satirizing and deriding it. Because the main problem seems to be casting "contempt" on the flag, the crime lies in the message being sent rather than the actual act. Even worse is inclusion of "by words" here, which means that using words to ridicule an American flag is as much of a crime as burning it in the public square.
More:
- Overview of State Laws on Flag Abuse, Burning, Desecration
- Index of State Laws on Flag Abuse, Burning, Desecration
