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Date: 10-25-2024
Case Style:
Case Number: 125,341
Judge: Jeffrey R. Elder
Court: District Court, Wabaunsee County, Kansas
Plaintiff's Attorney: Wabaunsee County, Kansas District Attorney's Office
Defendant's Attorney:
Description: Alma, Kansas criminal defense lawyer represented the Defendant charged with embezzlement.
Nichols started working at Perfection II Masonry, Inc., in 2019. Nichols worked for Charles Lillich-the president, half owner, and day-to-day operator of Perfection II, which employed around 20 people. The company's store is in Alta Vista, a small community in Wabaunsee County. When he started, Nichols worked in the company's office, doing several jobs, including estimating jobs, helping with payroll, paying bills, and dealing with contractors and vendors.
When Lillich's wife died in May 2019, Nichols took over her responsibility as the "sole payroll operator," giving him full control of Perfection II's payroll system. This included access to the company's check stamp and software system, QuickBooks, from around June 2020 to June 2021. Nichols issued all the company's paychecks, including his own, logged his own work hours, and controlled all payment for bills and company expenses. Nichols prepared and printed each check using a computer, printer, and stamp in Perfection II's office in Lillich's Morris County house. The checks automatically included Perfection II's banking information, including its address and account, routing, and check numbers. Nichols was not required to request permission to issue any checks for payment and thus performed these tasks without oversight.
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The jury convicted Nichols on both charges. The district court sentenced him to a term of 34 months in prison for the theft and a consecutive term of 7 months for destroying a written instrument."
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State v. Nichols, 125,341 (Kan. App. Oct 25, 2024)
Outcome: Affirmed
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments: