A 12-member jury on Friday found former Albert Lea City Manager Jim Norman guilty of seven out of his eight counts tied to misusing the city-issued credit card for personal purchases.

Norman said he planned to appeal the decision, noting that he needs to get his family life and employment back in order.

“It’s my belief justice was not served today,” he said.

The verdict came at about 6:15 p.m. at the Freeborn County Courthouse, after just shy of three hours of deliberation by the jury and a full week of jury selection and trial proceedings.

Mower County District Court Judge Fred Wellmann — who presided on the case — read aloud the verdicts and then polled each of the jurors to see if they agreed. Each answered in the affirmative.

As the verdict was read, Norman, 57, looked ahead and did not show much emotion other than turning red in the face. At one point he looked back at his family members in the courtroom gallery, a few of whom were crying.

Out of the eight charges he faced, Norman was found guilty of five counts of permitting false claims against government by a public officer, one count of theft with the intent to exercise temporary control and one count of misconduct by a public officer.

All of the counts are felonies except for the misconduct charge, which is a gross misdemeanor.

The permitting false claims counts included charges Norman made on the city credit card for feminine hygiene products from Shopko; an aquarium, trail mix and cat litter from Walmart; a refrigerator from Home Depot; women’s shoes from Herberger’s; and home garbage service from Thompson Sanitation.

The one charge the jury found Norman not guilty of was permitting false claims against government by a public officer for buying batteries from Walmart.

He, through his lawyer, Peggy Rockow, had argued that the state failed to show proof beyond a reasonable doubt on each count.

Norman, who started full time as city manager in May 2010, had stated he thought many of the charges could have been considered relocation expenses.

Rockow argued that the section of Norman’s employment agreement that referred to moving and relocation expenses was not clear in its definition of relocation expenses.

Norman said he thought most reasonable people would have seen this as the case.

During her closing arguments, Rockow said her client had nothing to hide and that evidence showed no “purposeful intent to defraud.”

Chief Deputy Waseca County Attorney Brenda Miller, who prosecuted the case, argued that the case was one of trust and accountability, where Norman put his own interest above that of the public.

Miller argued that Norman gave inconsistent statements to account for improper credit card charges — including initial statements about having to use the card because he had bad finances, to ones that he thought the charges were considered moving and relocation expenses, and even that he mistakenly used the wrong card when making purchases.

“How many times has the defendant’s story changed?” Miller said in her closing arguments.

She said Norman used the city credit card hoping to “float” himself by.

“He knew what he was doing,” she said. “He knew the charges were improper. That’s why he paid them back right away.”

After hearing the verdict Friday evening, Miller said she believed the jury had reached a “fair and just” verdict.

She commended the jury for their work and said she could tell they conducted thorough research by finding him not guilty of one of the counts.

She said she does not think Norman will be sentenced to much other than a suspended jail or prison sentence because of his previous lack of criminal history; however, she said she did not know officially how much time Norman could face until a presentence investigation has been conducted.

Rockow was unable to be reached for comment after the hearing.

Wellmann ordered the presentence investigation be expedited and that the sentencing be within 45 days.

Norman was released on his personal promise to appear.

Albert Lea Mayor Vern Rasmussen declined to comment on the verdict.