Former Crawfordsville city clerk charged with theft and misconduct

    Former Crawfordsville City Clerk John Hamil, 62, was arrested Wednesday and charged with first-degree theft of more than $10,000 and felonious misconduct during his time as the city clerk. Hamil was released without bail on his personal recognizance. His preliminary hearing has been set for March 24.

    First-degree theft carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Felonious misconduct in Office carries a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison and a $7,500 fine. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

    The State Auditor?s Office and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) began investigating Hamil in early February for improper disbursement allegedly made from the city treasury to his personal residence. Hamil was Crawfordsville?s city clerk for 27 years from 1982 until February 28, 2009. The theft and felonious conduct are alleged to have occurred in the last 10 years of Hamil?s tenure, between July 1999 and February 2009.

For more, see our March 11 print edition.