-- A district judge has ruled that Scott Belt cannot return to his seat on the Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors.

Judge Roger Sailer issued the ruling from the bench Thursday afternoon after hearing nearly two days worth of arguments and testimony in the case brought forward by Pottawattamie County Attorney Matt Wilber. A legal petition was filed by Wilber against Belt last month citing Belt's actions at a town hall meeting in Carson on November 5th and several other incidents of alleged drunken conduct by Belt.

In his ruling, Sailer concluded the evidence was enough to take the "extraordinary measure" of removing Belt from an elected office, whose term runs through the end of 2026.

KMTV Southwest Iowa reporter Katrina Markel reported that arguments made during the trial at the Pottawattamie County Courthouse centered around whether Belt was intoxicated while performing his official duties, with the defense arguing the town hall, which is not mandated by a state statute, did not qualify as an official part of a supervisor's job and that Belt was there voluntarily....

...https://www.kmaland.com/news/judge-rules-belt-must-be-removed-from-pottawattamie-county-board-of-supervisors/article_a97baef9-830e-4c8b-b409-07d381d1f6cb.html