Former County Road Supt. faces cruelty to children charge
Lester Scot Harnage, 59, of Lenox, who has served as County Road Superintendent, was arrested June 16, 2023, and charged with cruelty to children, first degree – felony and simple battery – misdemeanor, according to the Adel Police Department.
According to warrants, at about 5 p.m. June 16 at a North Cleveland Avenue, Adel, address, the defendant “willingly and knowingly did maliciously cause” a 16-year-old juvenile male “cruel or excessive physical or mental pain” by punching him in the chest and left cheek.
Harnage was released the same date of arrest on a $9,000 property bond. Bond conditions include no contact with the victim; do not go within 500 feet of him. Court records state that the defendant has declined a court-appointed defense attorney.
The case is pending in Cook County Superior Court.
County Manager Randy Lane confirmed that Harnage has resigned from his position as County Road Superintendent.
The County has placed an advertisement for a new Road Superintendent in the legal organ, the Adel News-Tribune, for this week and next week. The deadline to apply for the position is 4:30 p.m. Friday, July 7. The Road Superintendent is under direct supervision of the County Manager.
