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IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF IOWA No. 8-578 / 07-2164 Filed August 27, 2008 KEITH ROBERT BROWN, Plaintiff-Appellant, vs. DAVENPORT POLICE DEPARTMENT, Defendant-Appellee. ________________________________________________________________ Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Scott County, David H. Sivright, Jr., Judge.

Plaintiff appeals the district courts dismissal of his petition seeking to obtain investigation records under the Iowa Open Records Act. AFFIRMED.

Keith Robert Brown, pro se, Anamosa. Christopher S. Jackson, Davenport, for appellee.

Considered by Sackett, C.J., and Miller and Potterfield, JJ.

2 SACKETT, C.J. Plaintiff appeals from the district courts dismissal of his petition seeking to obtain police investigation reports under the Iowa Open Records Act. We affirm. I. BACKGROUND. Plaintiff is incarcerated after being convicted of charges relating to the death of Virgil Engelkins in 1999. In 2004, Plaintiff sought to obtain police reports made during the investigation of the crime. He sent several letters to the

Davenport Police Department, requesting a copy of all records relating to the investigation pursuant to the Federal Freedom of Information Act and Iowa Open Records Act. Plaintiffs requests were unanswered by the police department. The county attorney informed plaintiff that the records were previously provided to plaintiffs attorney and would not be furnished again. Plaintiff filed a petition with the district court requesting the production of the documents and filed a motion for summary judgment. Plaintiff served notice of the action on the

defendant by sending a copy of the original notice and petition to the defendant by certified mail. On January 19, 2005, the district court dismissed the action without prejudice finding the defendant had never been personally served with original notice because no return of service was in the court file. The court ordered plaintiff to effectuate service of original notice by February 7. Though original notice was filed on February 2, 2005, no return of service appears in the record. In 2007, plaintiff filed a new petition seeking enforcement of the Iowa Records Act against the Davenport Police Department. The defendant again

3 asserted it had not been served original notice. On December 14, 2007, the district court dismissed the action on several grounds including the failure to serve an original notice. Plaintiff appeals. II. SCOPE OF REVIEW. If a party is not served original notice or improperly served notice, a court may not have personal jurisdiction to resolve a legal issue. See Dickens v.

Associated Anesthesiologists, P.C., 709 N.W.2d 122, 127 (Iowa 2006). Proceedings concerning a courts jurisdiction are legal issues and reviewed for errors at law. In re Marriage of Engler, 532 N.W.2d 747, 748 (Iowa 1995). III. ANALYSIS. "Original notices are ,,served by delivering a copy to the proper person." Iowa R. Civ. P. 1.305. A governmental board or agency can be served by

delivering the notice to its presiding officer, clerk, or secretary. Iowa R. Civ. P. 1.305(13). A mailed notice does not satisfy the personal service required by the rules of civil procedure. Harrington v. City of Keokuk, 258 Iowa 1043, 1049-50, 141 N.W.2d 633, 637-38 (1966). "[U]nless otherwise provided by statute, the Service of a notice must be personal." Id. at 1049, 141 N.W.2d at 637. Plaintiff argues service by certified mail is permitted because he is seeking to enforce the Iowa Open Records Act. One method by which persons can

enforce their rights under the Open Records Act is by seeking judicial review according to the provisions of the Iowa Administrative Procedure Act. Iowa Code

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