Jobless Iowans accused of workplace misconduct seek unemployment benefits

A mental health worker who was fired after being criminally charged with sexual enticement of a minor is entitled to collect unemployment benefits, a judge has ruled.

State records indicate Gabriel Kelley, 23, of Cedar Rapids, began working as a full-time, community-based lead worker for the Abbe Center for Community Mental Health in July 2025. As part of his duties, Kelley was responsible for overseeing two residential facilities, supervising a staff of direct-support professionals and training new employees.

According to state records, Kelley was fired on June 5, 2026, after being charged with two felonies: sexually enticing a minor under the age of 16 and grooming. He later applied for unemployment benefits, which led to a hearing before Administrative Law Judge Patrick Thomas.

Noting that the charged offenses were for alleged conduct that took place outside of work and did not involve any coworkers or individuals associated with the Abbe Center, Thomas ruled recently that Kelley was not discharged for conduct that disqualifies him from collecting jobless benefits.

Thomas noted Kelley has not been found guilty of any criminal offenses and that he maintains his innocence. Unproven and unsubstantiated allegations do not constitute disqualifying, job-related misconduct, Thomas concluded.

Court records indicate Cedar Rapids police created a Reddit profile portraying themselves as a 13-year-old female named Bella. Officer then posted a Reddit thread with “Bella” saying she was bored and looking for fun.

That post allegedly led to Kelley contacting “Bella,” and during the ensuing exchange “Bella” indicated she was 13 years old. According to police, the discussions then became sexual in nature, and Kelley eventually messaged “Bella” to say he was on his way to meet her at her purported home.

At the house, police confronted Kelley, seized his phone, and placed him under arrest. Kelley later entered a plea of not guilty to the charges of sexually enticing a minor under the age of 16 and grooming.

Court records indicate prosecutors offered Kelley a plea deal of some kind on Aug. 27, 2026. A plea hearing is now scheduled for Oct. 1, 2026.

Other Iowans whose unemployment cases were recently decided include:

Heather Dohrmann, who worked for the City of Davenport as a code enforcement officer from June 2024 until she resigned in the spring of 2026. State records indicate Dohrmann was sent to a house on Feb. 11, 2026, to look into a report of vehicles being parked in the yard. During the visit, the homeowner was hostile, began swearing at Dohrmann, and police were summoned. The police arrested the homeowner, and Dohrmann obtained a no-contact against the individual, according to state records.

Sometime later, Dohrmann was asked to go back to the house for a compliance check. She explained to her supervisor she couldn’t go due to the no-contact order, but the supervisor allegedly continued to insist on the compliance check. Without informing the human resources department or upper management of her concerns about intolerable working conditions, Dohrmann quit, according to state records.

Administrative Law Judge Stephanie Adkisson recently ruled Dohrmann was ineligible for jobless benefits, finding that the city had no way of knowing Dohrmann was considering resigning and had no chance to remediate any issues.

Madison Oswalt, who worked for the Animal Rescue League of Iowa as a full-time animal services officer from May 2019 until she was fired on July 15. 2026. As an animal services officer, Oswalt was responsible for responding to calls from citizens and police.

On the night of July 13, 2026, Oswalt was assigned to be the on-call officer tasked with responding to any police calls for assistance with animals. At around 11 p.m., a Des Moines police dispatcher tried calling Oswalt to respond to an incident involving two large, aggressive dogs that were not contained, according to state records. When Oswalt didn’t answer, the dispatcher immediately called Oswalt’s supervisor, who unsuccessfully tried reaching Oswalt several times.

At around 11:30 a.m., Oswalt called the dispatcher and apologized for having missed the earlier call. When informed of the need for assistance, Oswalt appeared to question the nature of the request, then asked the dispatcher for the names of the officers at the scene, according to state records. The call allegedly ended without Oswalt agreeing to respond to the request for assistance.

After speaking to her supervisor, who instructed Oswalt to respond to the call, Oswalt arrived at the home where the dogs were located at about 12:30 a.m. At the time, the ARL later alleged, Oswalt was not wearing the required uniform, protective body armor or body camera. She allegedly spoke so aggressively to the homeowner that the police officers intervened and separated the two, according to state records. A few days later, the ARL fired Oswalt for unprofessional conduct and insubordination, after which Oswalt filed for unemployment.

Recently, Administrative Law Judge Patrick Thomas ruled Oswalt, “through her aggressive and unprofessional conduct,” had committed job-related misconduct that disqualified her from collecting unemployment benefits. Oswalt is now obligated to repay $1,028 in unemployment benefits already collected, Thomas ruled.