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Plea deal reduces charges against ex-Waukee schools official

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April 19th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

WAUKEE, Iowa (AP) — The former chief operating officer of the Waukee school district has resolved criminal misconduct in office allegations by pleading guilty to lesser charges. Dallas County on Friday dropped felony charges against former Waukee chief operating officer Eric Rose.

Instead, Rose pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges related to his personal use of a district snowblower and his solicitation of district vendors to make donations to his son’s hockey team. The dismissed charges related to allegations that he directed staff to falsify time cards of a maintenance worker who ran an errand for him.

Rose was granted a deferred judgment, which means the charges will be dismissed after he completes one year probation, and fined $630. His attorney, Grant Woodard, said his client is satisfied with the agreement and “looks forward to putting this all behind him.”

Rose was charged in December after a state audit of the school district described a culture of questionable spending and management decisions by administrators.