It appears former Iowa basketball player Pierre Pierce is free to pursue his desire to play pro ball in Europe. 

A district court judge granted Pierce permission to go to France and play for a team there, but the attorney general objected, saying there’s no way an Iowa-based probation officer could properly supervise Pierce while he’s in a foreign country.

Pierce, who is 25 years old, was kicked off the University of Iowa basketball team after his second assault conviction. He pleaded guilty to assaulting and burglarizing an ex-girlfriend at her West Des Moines home in 2005. He served about a year in prison before being released on probation.

Pierce signed with one of 16 teams in the top professional basketball league in France. The league has already started its season. Three justices on the Iowa Supreme Court reviewed the matter. Two of the three agreed with Pierce’s lawyer, clearing Pierce for his overseas job.