Iowa high court launches courthouse break-ins investigation

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court says it has hired a law firm to conduct an independent investigation into the arrests of two cybersecurity workers who were found inside a closed central Iowa courthouse and say they were just doing their jobs testing courthouse security.

The state's high court said in a statement Friday that it had hired Faegre Baker Daniels, one of the largest law firms in the Midwest.

The men were working for Colorado-based cybersecurity company Coalfire when they were arrested inside the Dallas County Courthouse early Sept. 11. The state court administration has said it hired Coalfire to test security of electronic access to court records, not "forced entry into a building."

But the contract between Coalfire and the state seems to outline plans for the company to try to break into the courthouses in Dallas and Polk counties, as well as the Judicial Branch Building that houses the Iowa Supreme Court.