County Employee Charged With Falsifying Documents Resigns

A Mills County employee accused of falsifying public documents has resigned.

Mills County Auditor Carol Robertson said emergency management specialist Adam Wainwright submitted his resignation last week. Wainwright, 35, was placed on paid administrative leave earlier this month after being charged with two counts of falsifying a public document, a Class D felony.

An investigation by the Iowa State Patrol determined a document that authorized Wainwright to use red and blue emergency lighting in his personal vehicle was not produced or authorized by the Iowa Department of Transportation, as required by law. During an interview with the state patrol, Wainwright admitted to making the false document with the Iowa Department of Transportation logo from his home computer, a state patrol report said.

A search warrant was conducted on Wainwright’s personal laptop and another false document was found on the computer from April 2014.

Fremont County Attorney Corey Becker, who is serving as special prosecutor in the case, said a Class D felony carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison and up to a $7,500 fine.

Wainwright was hired earlier this year to fill a new position in the emergency management office when Mills County Emergency Management director Larry Hurst was given additional supervisory duties in the Mills County Communications Center.

Robertson said Hurst and other members of the county’s interview team will work together in finding a replacement for Wainwright.