Former Floyd County Attorney’s Office employee convicted of theft, fraud misdemeanors

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

A former Floyd County Attorney’s Office employee who was charged with theft and credit card fraud was found guilty Friday in Floyd County District Court of two aggravated misdemeanors.

The jury found Janelle Herrmann guilty of third-degree theft and credit card fraud after a little more than half an hour of deliberation.

Herrmann, of Charles City, the former victim and witness coordinator for the Floyd County Attorney’s Office, was originally charged with ongoing criminal conduct, a Class B felony; second-degree theft, a Class D felony; and credit card fraud, an aggravated misdemeanor; after a February 2021 audit report by the Iowa Auditor of State Office alleged improper financial actions. The ongoing criminal conduct charge was later dismissed.

Herrmann was identified in the state audit report as allegedly being involved in “$1,524.40 of improper disbursements, $113.47 of unsupported disbursements, and $313.00 of undeposited collections” involving funds for the Floyd County Sexual Assault Response Team, of which Herrmann was a member.

In a bill of particulars filed in February this year, the prosecution listed 32 alleged instances of theft for the second-degree theft charge, totaling $1,837.40, including credit card purchases, ATM withdrawals, checks written to Herrmann personally, service fees and charges, money collected from events and other transactions.

On the credit card fraud charge, 18 credit card transactions totaling $1,257.45 were listed. All of those transactions were also included in Count 1.

On Feb. 1, Hancock County Attorney Blake Norman filed an application to amend the charges against Herrmann, asking that the Class B felony first count, ongoing criminal conduct – the most serious of the charges – be dismissed to “more accurately reflect” the criminal offenses committed.

Norman was acting as special prosecutor because Floyd County Attorney Rachel Ginbey had been Herrmann’s employer and was a potential witness in the case. Norman later withdrew from the case to help out Winnebago County during an absence of that county’s attorney, and Cerro Gordo County Assistant Attorney Robert Dearden took over the prosecution.

Herrmann had been represented in her case by various private attorneys, but beginning in December 2021, she began filing her own motions in the case, acting pro se – representing herself, although the court appointed a stand-by counsel to help Herrmann as needed.

Herrmann told the Press previously, “There are many inaccuracies and just plain lies contained in the state auditor’s report that will eventually be exposed.”

Herrmann was found guilty of the lesser charge of third-degree theft instead of second-degree theft as charged, as well as the charge of credit card fraud, thus avoiding a felony conviction.