DES MOINES — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has appointed Fort Dodge attorney Ryan Kehm as a District Court judge in Judicial District 2B, placing a longtime private-practice lawyer on the bench serving Wright County and a broad section of north-central Iowa.
Reynolds announced the appointment Monday, July 20, 2026.
Kehm will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of District Judge John Haney, who had served on the bench since 2014.
Judicial District 2B covers 13 counties: Boone, Calhoun, Carroll, Greene, Hamilton, Hardin, Humboldt, Marshall, Pocahontas, Sac, Story, Webster and Wright.
The inclusion of Wright County gives Kehm a direct judicial role in part of Northern Iowa, while neighboring Hamilton, Humboldt and Webster counties also make up a significant portion of the district’s north-central Iowa territory.
Kehm is a Fort Dodge native and an attorney with Crimmins & Kehm Law Firm.
He earned both his undergraduate degree and law degree from Creighton University. During law school, Kehm participated in Creighton’s advanced trial-practice program and earned a CALI Excellence for the Future Award, an honor recognizing top performance in a law school course.
After graduating from Creighton University School of Law in 2012, Kehm practiced law in Omaha before returning to Fort Dodge in 2016.
His private practice has covered a wide range of legal matters, including trial work, personal injury cases, wills and probate, estate planning and real estate.
Kehm has also been involved with professional legal organizations including the Webster County Bar Association, Iowa State Bar Association, Nebraska State Bar Association and Omaha Bar Association.
His appointment marks a transition for District 2B following Haney’s retirement.
Haney was appointed to the Iowa District Court bench in 2014 by then-Gov. Terry Branstad. Before becoming a district judge, Haney practiced law and served as a magistrate in Marshall County.
As a district judge, Kehm will be responsible for handling major criminal and civil cases assigned throughout Judicial District 2B. Iowa district judges preside over felony criminal prosecutions, significant civil disputes, family-law matters and other cases within the state court system.
Kehm’s appointment is effective through Iowa’s judicial appointment process, under which vacancies are screened through a judicial nominating commission before finalists are submitted to the governor for selection.
For residents of Wright County and the surrounding north-central Iowa region, Kehm becomes one of the judges who may preside over some of the area’s most serious criminal prosecutions and significant civil court disputes.