LINCOLN — The former director of the state historical society is asking that a felony charge he faces be dismissed because he hasn’t received a speedy trial.
Trevor Jones, 52, faces up to 20 years in prison for felony theft by deception, a charge sparked by a critical state audit in 2022 — an audit first reported by the Nebraska Examiner.
Jones, who resigned from the $164,800-a-year job just before the audit was released, was formally charged in July 2023. He now argues that the felony must be dismissed because he has been denied his right to a speedy trial.
In a brief filed recently, Jones’ attorney, Mallory Hughes, argued that by her calculation, her client should have faced a trial by Sept. 12.
“ … The record shows the Defendant has not done anything to delay, continue, reschedule, or otherwise create a “good cause” scenario which might support setting trial in this case beyond the … deadline,” Hughes maintained.
She argued that since it’s up to prosecutors and the court to bring the case to trial with the speedy trial deadline, it should be dismissed.
A hearing on the motion has been scheduled for Nov. 26.
The charge against Jones, she wrote, was filed on Nov. 28, 2023. The speedy trial rule requires that a defendant stand trial within six months of being indicted, though time to deal with court motions and discovery of evidence is excluded. Mallory calculated that there were 107 “excludable days” so the deadline was Sept. 12.
The Nebraska Attorney General’s Office, which is prosecuting the case, did not respond immediately to a request for comment Monday. The office generally does not comment on such developments.
Jones was charged after state auditors discovered that he had redirected about $270,000 in funds provided by the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation to cover financial losses caused by the closing of state museums during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Instead of depositing the funds with the state treasurer, as legally required, and using the money for budget relief, Jones deposited the funds into a private foundation that he had helped create, to bolster its accounts.
His defense attorneys have made more than one attempt to get the charge dropped, arguing that Jones, as director, had the discretion to use the donated funds as he wanted.
Mallory took over as Jones’ attorney after his case was bound over to Lancaster County District Court a year ago. Lincoln attorney John Ball had been Jones’ defense attorney during the preliminary hearing held in county court.
This story was published by Nebraska Examiner, an editorially independent newsroom providing a hard-hitting, daily flow of news. Read the original article: https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2024/11/18/former-director-of-state-histori…
