By Beacon Staff
A three-person civil service commission has unanimously affirmed Des Moines County Sheriff's Mike Johnstone's decision to fire deputy Al Waterman.
Waterman, an 18-year-law enforcement veteran who sits on the West Burlington City Council and formerly served with the West Burlington Police Department, was terminated April 8 by Johnstone. He was the school resource officer at Mediapolis High School until his termination.
The Des Moines County Civil Service Commission announced the decision Monday afternoon via a YouTube live stream, finding Waterman had committed insubordination, breach of integrity, failure to report the misconduct of another deputy, and unprofessional conduct.
The commission said Waterman isn’t subject to further punishment beyond his termination. Monday’s decision simply affirmed the decision of the sheriff’s department.
During testimony at a hearing last week, Waterman said his termination stemmed from a text message he sent to fellow Des Moines County Deputy Corey Whitaker on Feb. 12. In the text, Waterman told Whitaker that three anonymous sources claimed he had run three temporary stop signs at the Mediapolis High School. Waterman said he asked Whitaker to comply with school safety regulations.
Waterman later said the anonymous sources were students who did not want to self-identify. He testified last week that he didn’t want to betray that trust, so he declined to provide additional information to his supervisor.
Though Waterman was dinged by the commission for not reporting the alleged misconduct to his superior, members also noted it was “admirable” that he did not try to make the issue a bigger deal.
However, it was his conduct during the subsequent investigation by the sheriff’s department that proved most troubling to commission members, including a changing account of what happened.
Though Waterman initially said three people saw Whitaker roll through three stop signs by Mediapolis High School, he later said he personally observed one of the violations.
During an interview on Feb. 25, Waterman said Whitaker’s infraction actually took place two or three weeks before Feb. 12. Waterman said he had forgotten about the incident until Feb. 12, when he finally looked at the video and warned Whitaker.
It was the first time Waterman had mentioned that the traffic incidents took place weeks earlier, which made it impossible to review the video of the alleged incidents. The school’s video hard drive is erased every two weeks to prevent it from filling, meaning there is no longer video of the incident.
Though Waterman had never been reprimanded before, the commission found his story to be too inconsistent. They concurred with the sheriff's office that Waterman either exaggerated or fabricated the incident.
Waterman is a Republican candidate for Des Moines County Sheriff, and the commission’s findings will have no bearing on his legitimacy for the office.