Van Weelden Found Not Guilty
Henry ‘Willie’ Van Weelden at his second trial.
Oskaloosa, Iowa – Henry ‘Willie” Van Weelden was found not guilty on Tuesday December 24, 2013 on three separate counts. Count one was Theft in the First Degree. Second was Misconduct in Office and third was Tampering with Records.
The original trial information in this case was filed on April 22, 2011. The original trial by jury ended on February 3, 2012 with a jury verdict of guilty on all counts. The trial judge entered an order granting a new trial, and the Iowa Court of Appeals affirmed the new trial.
A bench trial took place on November 18 and 19 of 2013 before District Judge Dan Morrison.
In his ruling, Judge Morrison stated, “It is important to note the Board members, for whatever reason, do not get along. The votes are often 2 to 1 with Van Wheelden being the one. There appears to be little cooperation among the members. It is in June that the lack of cooperation and communication begins causing problems and in the court’s opinion is the cause of Van Wheelden’s actions and Rouw and Gordy’s response of involving the County Attorney.”
“Everything about the Supervisor’s coverage/entitlement is unclear,” said Judge Morrison in his ruling.
The conclusion of law as outlined by Judge Morrision:
1- To commit Theft pursuant to Chapter 714 Code of Iowa the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt the elements of the offense, however, no person who obtains property, is guilty of theft by reason of such act if the person reasonably believes he has a right to obtain the property. The evidence supports a finding the defendant did have a reasonable belief he had a right to the insurance for his wife. 714.4 Code of Iowa.
2- To commit Misconduct in Office pursuant to Chapter 721.1 the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt the elements of the offense, including, the defendant had a conscious awareness that he falsified a public record or issued a document falsely purporting to be a public record. The evidence supports a finding the defendant reasonably believed he was entitled to the insurance for his wife so he had NO conscious awareness of falsifying any public record.
3- To commit the offense of Tampering with Records pursuant to 715A.5 Code of Iowa the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt the elements of the offense, including, the defendant had a conscious awareness he had no right or privilege to act. The evidence supports a finding the defendant reasonably believed he had a right to fill out the forms and send the letter to Auxiant because he believed he was entitled to the insurance for Bonnie because of the Rouw, Van Wheelden “agreement”, re-elected and newly elected are the same for the Plan.
You can read the complete judgement by clicking on this LINK
