Polk County Supervisor Tom Hockensmith allegedly threatened to fight and threatened other supervisors after administrator John Norris was placed on leave Friday, according to a report filed with the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
The report about a verbal dispute among the supervisors was filed Friday and comes amid Norris being asked to resign last week as administrator after a shift in power on the board. Norris’ firing reflects ongoing difficult relations among leaders in the state’s largest county, where several lawsuits are pending tied to past power struggles, allegations of harassment and defamation, and political featherbedding.
Norris, a former head of Iowa’s Democratic Party, chief of staff for former Gov. Tom Vilsack and a three-time presidential campaign manager, told the Des Moines Register on Monday the two new Republican supervisors on the board, Jill Altringer and Mark Holm, asked for his resignation within 24 hours of being sworn into office Jan. 2. Supervisor Matt McCoy, who was appointed chair last week, told the responding deputy “the board had made the decision to terminate” Norris, according to the police report.
Polk County supervisors are set to hold a special meeting Wednesday to appoint an interim county administrator. As a contract employee, Norris cannot be fired without a majority vote of the five-member board of supervisors. The agenda for Wednesday’s meeting did not indicate whether that would happen.
The report filed Friday with the Sheriff’s Office lists Norris and Hockensmith, supervisor since 2003, as suspects and McCoy and Holm as victims. It also lists Supervisor Angela Connolly as a witness, detailing that she tried to step in and separate Hockensmith and Holm.
It is unclear if Holm or McCoy are pressing charges. None of the supervisors could immediately be reached for comment.
Polk County District 4 Supervisor Tom Hockensmith speaks during a Polk County Board of Supervisors meeting at Polk County Administration Building on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, in Des Moines.
What does the report say happened?
Sheriff’s deputies received two calls from the Polk County Administration Building around 2 p.m. Friday about an argument that allegedly broke out among a few county supervisors, the report says.
One of the calls was from Court Services Chief Ken Pilch who told deputies Hockensmith allegedly was causing a disturbance and had made threats toward other board members.
The deputy came across Connolly, who was standing at the entrance, when deputies entered the board members’ offices on the third floor. Hockensmith had left the county building by the time deputies arrived, the report says.
Connolly did not give the deputy any information and asked why the sheriff’s officials were there. The deputy responded they were there on a disturbance call and Connolly said to talk to the board chair, McCoy.
McCoy told the deputy that they had “quite a day” and the board’s decision to fire Norris had upset Hockensmith. He told the deputy that Hockensmith “lost his mind” and wanted to fight McCoy and Holm, according to the report.
McCoy told the deputy Hockensmith “went after” Holm in his office and got in his face. Connolly stepped in to separate them. Hockensmith then went to McCoy’s office, McCoy alleged.
Hockensmith said, “Come on, McCoy. Come out here right now,” McCoy told the deputy.
McCoy said Norris also screamed at him. McCoy told the deputy he did not respond to either Norris or Hockensmith, but said he wanted the incident documented.
Holm told deputies Norris was asked to resign and then started yelling about being fired. He told deputies Hockensmith was running up and down the hallway screaming and then came into Holm’s office, puffed up, and yelled something like, “You’re going to hate me. I’ll show you. I’ll take you,” according to the report. Holm also told deputies he wasn’t sure exactly what Hockensmith said.
In the report, the deputy said Norris remained on scene until he was interviewed, signed some HR paperwork and was told to leave. The report says Norris “packed up what items he wanted and was allowed to leave the building,” contradicting reports Monday that sheriff’s deputies escorted Norris out of the building.
The Polk County Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a question whether any charges would be filed. But Mari Culver, an assistant county attorney with the Polk County Attorney’s Office and wife of former Gov. Chet Culver, was at the scene on the day of the assault, the report shows.
From left: Polk County Supervisors Matt McCoy, Steve Van Oort and Angela Connolly sign election certification paperwork at the Polk County Administration Building on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, in Des Moines.
New supervisors say they’ll work full-time jobs, too
The run-in between McCoy, Holm and Hockensmith was not the only thing making waves in the county this week.
Holm and the other newly elected supervisor, Altringer, both have indicated they intend to work at the jobs they had before the November election as well as their $150,000 full-time jobs as supervisors. Neither mentioned that on the campaign trail.
Polk County supervisors’ salaries and benefits are among some of the most generous in the country, several Register reports have found.
The county’s manual for elected officials says supervisors have the “flexibility to set their own hours so as to fulfill their duties.” But according to the county’s website, the supervisors’ most important function is to be “available to its constituency on a full-time basis and can respond to issues of importance to citizens.”
Holm works at the Iowa Department of Transportation and Altringer, a former Grimes councilmember and attorney, is a lobbyist representing agriculture groups at the Iowa Legislature. She told Axios she took on a partner to help her work at the Capitol while she balances her new supervisor position.
A majority of supervisors have voted to give themselves a raise every year for at least the past 16 years. Their last, for the fiscal year that began in July, was 4%.
The supervisors’ pay has been well in excess of those for county board members in similar-sized Midwestern counties. Their pay also eclipses that of Gov. Kim Reynolds, who makes $130,000 a year.
Holm told Axios he successfully served as mayor of Ankeny while working for the DOT, but as mayor served a population of 74,458. The population of Polk County was 505,255 in 2023, according to the U.S. Census.
In addition to overseeing the county and its budget, the board makes key decisions that impact regional economic development, establish tax levies, enact ordinances, appoint individuals who serve on boards and commissions, and make final decisions about who receives community grants from Prairie Meadows proceeds. The board has the ability to hire and fire department heads, including the county administrator.
In addition to the state’s retirement program, elected officials in Polk County are eligible to participate in a deferred compensation program that offers an additional way to save for retirement. The county chips in $1 for every $2 contributed by the elected official up to a maximum of 6% of their base salary.
This story will update.
Virginia Barreda is the Des Moines city government reporter for the Register. She can be reached at vbarreda@dmreg.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Polk County supervisor allegedly threatened colleagues over firing