Ex-child welfare worker enters guilty plea to perjury that resulted in child removal

An Iowa social services worker has entered a guilty plea to perjury over her false testimony that helped convince a judge to remove four children from their parents.

Former Iowa Department of Human Services employee Chelsie Gray entered a written Alford plea to the felony charge last week under a proposed plea agreement with prosecutors.

Such a plea is an acknowledgment that prosecutors may have enough evidence to prove her guilt at trial but that she maintains her innocence.

If accepted by a judge, prosecutors would dismiss two other perjury counts and she will be recommended for a deferred judgment. That means the charge would be wiped away from her record if she stays out of trouble.

A judge has scheduled a plea and sentencing hearing for Dec. 3.

Gray, 30, was charged in April with making several false statements during a December 2017 hearing in which she recommended a judge terminate the parental rights of a mother and father.