UI official awaits ruling

MOSCOW, Idaho – A guilty plea entered by a former University of Idaho official charged with squandering more than $70,000 is now in limbo, as the Idaho Supreme Court considers whether to uphold a separate lower court ruling that limits convictions for misuse of public funds.

Sentencing for Dan Schoenberg, former university director of auxiliary services, had been scheduled for Friday but was postponed.

Defense attorney Wynn Mosman and Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson are awaiting the high court’s decision in the case of two Hagerman police officers convicted in 2003 of using department credit cards to buy hunting licenses.

The state Court of Appeals ruled earlier this year that employees can only be convicted of misuse of public funds, a felony, if they are entrusted with a statutory or constitutional duty to receive and disperse public money, Thompson told the Moscow-Pullman Daily News.

Schoenberg, 48, pleaded guilty on April 11 to misuse of public funds after an internal audit found that he authorized more than $70,000 in questionable expenses through the auxiliary services department.

Mosman said his client would face lesser charges if the decision in the Hagerman case is upheld. Under the appeals court ruling, only the school’s vice president of finance could be charged with misuse of public funds, a felony that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a possible $50,000 fine.

If convicted of the felony charge, Schoenberg would be barred from holding state office.

Thompson and Mosman will meet with Second District Court judges Carl Kerrick and John Stegner on Aug. 3 to address any state supreme court ruling.

If the high court upholds the appeals court ruling, the felony charge would likely be reduced to misdemeanor theft, which could result in a sentence of time served, Mosman said. Schoenberg already has paid the University of Idaho nearly $5,000 in fines and served 15 days in jail as part of his plea agreement.

If the Supreme Court does not uphold the lower court ruling, Mosman said his client would not attempt to rescind his guilty plea.

“If the ruling isn’t upheld, we are back where we started,” Mosman said.

Thompson said he hopes the Supreme Court will overturn the appeals court decision, which he considers too narrow.

“Anybody who has the ability to use public money I think should be held to higher standards,” he said. “It should apply to any public employee.”

Schoenberg resigned from the University of Idaho in November 2004 and now works as a property manager.