Pottawattamie County board authorizes independent investigation into alleged employee handbook violations

Following a closed session on personnel matters, the Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors on May 12 authorized the County Attorney to retain outside counsel Mike Carroll, of the Des Moines law firm Carney & Appleby, as an independent third‑party investigator to examine allegations of violations of Employee Handbook Policies 104 and/or 105 concerning a “Productive Work Environment.” The motion was made by Susan Miller and seconded by Jeff Jorgensen and passed with unanimous recorded votes where noted.

The motion set a fact‑finding scope of work: the investigator will gather and document facts through interviews and records review, operate with neutrality and independence from involved parties, select and interview relevant witnesses (including those who made informal complaints), and follow confidentiality protocols to the extent permitted by Iowa law. The written report must identify the specific allegations and relevant county policies, make credibility determinations where evidence conflicts, and indicate whether county policy was violated while generally avoiding legal conclusions. The Board authorized an expected expenditure of $10,000, not to exceed $15,000 without further Board approval, and set a 45‑day timeline for a final report to the County Attorney.

The Board initially entered closed session under Iowa Code 21.5(1)(i) to discuss personnel matters; when it reconvened it approved the investigator retention and scope. The investigator is to report findings directly to the County Attorney to preserve process integrity. No further specifics about the underlying allegations or the identities of any involved employees were disclosed in the public record.