Nicholson appointed to vacant county attorney seat

The Jasper County Board of Supervisors voted 3-0 during its weekly meeting Tuesday to appoint Scott Nicholson to fill the vacant county attorney seat, previously held by his former boss Mike Jacobsen, who recently began his new duties as district court judge in Iowa Judicial District 5A.

Before the former first assistant Jasper County attorney was sworn in by auditor Dennis Parrott, board chairman Doug Cupples, R-Newton, humorously asked if Nicholson was ready to run for election in November.

“No, but I’m working on it real quick,” Nicholson said with a laugh.

Cupples continued to praise Nicholson for his work in Jasper County.

“Well, Scott, we’re really happy and we’re glad you’re here to back up and come in when we need you,” Cupples said. “I’ve known you through other things down the road and you’ve just been really easy to work with. I appreciate you doing all this for us.”

Nicholson is entering his 22nd year serving Jasper County. Previous to his appointment as county attorney, he tried several high-profile cases with Jacobsen, including the 2015 Copper Dollar Ranch murders.

In June, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Jacobsen would join six other judges to cover Jasper, Dallas, Guthrie, Madison, Marion and Warren counties. The board voted 2-0 at a July 17 meeting to appoint rather than hold a special election to fill the once-vacant county attorney position. The latter option would have cost nearly $15,000 to facilitate.

Upon his appointment, Nicholson received applause from the board and meeting attendees. Now that he holds the seat as Jasper County Attorney, Nicholson said there is a need to bring on another attorney and asked permission from the board to begin the hiring process.

“The way our offices function for the last 20 years is we’ve had five attorneys,” Nicholson said. “I know that some numbers were submitted to you around compensation board time. The numbers, unfortunately, in Jasper County continue to grow. Our felony docket is at the highest level it’s ever been.”

Board member Joe Brock, D-rural Monroe, asked Nicholson where he would look to find applicants. The new Jasper County Attorney said his plan, depending on who applies, is to hire an attorney who knows more about civil law than he does and has some experience as an assistant county attorney so “they know the functions of the office and just hit the ground running.”

Meanwhile, job duties will be rearranged in the Jasper County Attorney’s Office.

“There are going to be readjustments starting Thursday, but I’ll start the hiring process (and) I’ll put out the ads next week,” Nicholson said. “Then I’ll come back before you gentlemen (the Jasper County Board of Supervisors) for approval.”

The process of hiring another attorney can take some time, Nicholson told the Newton Daily News. In the meantime, the county attorney’s office is going to have a limited delegation of duties.

“I don’t know what that looks like yet, but I’m working with staff on that now,” he said.

Excited to be working with the county at his new position, Nicholson said the next step is preparing for the upcoming election with a little more than three months to spare.

“I’m a Democrat, so I have to ask the Democratic Party in Jasper County to hold a county convention. I believe that is now set for August,” Nicholson said. “At the county convention, I will ask the party to nominate me to be on the ballot for the general elections in November (for the position of county attorney). Right now, my former boss, Mike Jacobsen, is on the ballot. He got the signatures earlier on this year, but we’re so late in the game that I’m just going to ask for a county convention to get on the ballot.

“Not exactly sure how good of a politician I’m going to be, but we’re going to find out.”

In other action Tuesday, the board:

• Voted 3-0 to approve a Notice of Award for RL Contractors, Inc. for the courthouse masonry repairs project, which is projected to cost $243,600. The board also voted 3-0 to approve a Standard Form of Agreement between Jasper County and RL Contractors, Inc. The project aims to repair the stonework of the Jasper County Courthouse dome.

• Voted 3-0 to approve the hiring of part-time jailer Dillon Van Manen and part-time dispatcher Chelsie Trotter for the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office. Both positions will begin work Aug. 3 and paid an hourly rate of $18.10.

• Voted 3-0 to approve a transfer order of $1,373,405 from the Local Option Sales Services Tax Fund to the General Basic Fund.

• Voted 3-0 to approve a transfer order of $5,845 from the General Basic Fund to the Ashton/Mariposa Parks Maintenance Fund.

Contact Christopher Braunschweig at 641-792-3121 ext. 6560 or cbraunschweig@newtondailynews.com