Former director of state historical society seeks dismissal of felony charge

LINCOLN, Neb. (Nebraska Auditor) – The former director of the state historical society is seeking to have the felony charge against him dismissed because he was not given a speedy trial.

Trevor Jones, 52, faces up to 20 years in prison for felony theft by deception. critical situation inspection 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 crime should be dismissed because he was denied the right to a speedy trial.

In a brief filed recently, Jones’ attorney, Mallory Hughes, argued that by her calculation, her client should face trial by Sept. 12.

“… The record demonstrates that Defendant did nothing to delay, continue, reschedule, or otherwise create a “good cause” scenario that would have supported the commencement of trial in this case beyond the deadline,” Hughes continued.

He argued that the case should be dismissed because it was up to prosecutors and the court to bring the case to trial with an expedited trial period.

A hearing on the motion is scheduled for November 26.

The charge against Jones was filed on Nov. 28, 2023, he wrote. The speedy trial rule requires the defendant to be tried within six months of the filing of a criminal complaint, but excludes the time to handle court motions and find evidence. Mallory calculated there were 107 “excludable days,” so the deadline was September 12.

The Nebraska Attorney General’s Office, which is prosecuting the case, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday. The office generally does not comment on such developments.

Jones was charged after state auditors discovered he diverted nearly $270,000 in funds provided by the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation to cover financial losses from the closure 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 assistance, Jones deposited the funds into a private foundation he helped establish to support his accounts.

Defense attorneys made multiple attempts to have the charge dismissed, arguing that as director, Jones had discretion to use the donated funds as he wished.

Mallory took over as Jones’ attorney after his case was transferred to Lancaster County District Court a year ago. Lincoln attorney John Ball was Jones’ defense attorney during the preliminary hearing in district court.

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