Court trial set for D91 employees facing civil complaint over alleged misuse of school district funds
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IDAHO FALLS — A court trial has been scheduled to decide whether or not two Idaho Falls School District 91 employees illegally advocated for a school bond using school board money.
District Judge Bruce Pickett set the court trial for July 11 and 12, 2024, during a motion hearing over Zoom on Thursday. Both sides are expected to file motions for summary judgments before the trial date.
A court trial is different than a jury trial. A court trial is where a judge will evaluate the evidence and the circumstances, before deciding which party is correct in a court of law. A jury trial consists of a group of residents who look over evidence to decide who is correct.
The hearing on Thursday was scheduled to discuss a motion to dismiss the defendant’s counterclaims. Pickett denied the motion.
Wimborne attended the hearing over Zoom, but Shank was not present, having recently moved out of state to fill a position at the North Beach School District in Washington.
Karla LaOrange became the first female D91 Superintendent in the district’s history on July 1.
The civil action alleges former D91 Superintendent James Shank and current D91 Director of Communications Margaret Wimborne, violated the Public Integrity in Elections Act by “authorizing the use of school district funds and resources to produce and distribute several fliers, posters and bookmarks which offered reasons why voters should pass the bond,” according to a news release from Bonneville County Prosecutor Randy Neal.
According to the Act, “it is against the public policy of the state of Idaho for public funds, resources or property to be used to advocate for or against a candidate or ballot measure.”
The Idaho Falls School District Board of Trustees denies any wrongdoing and says factual information was legally printed and distributed to patrons, but Neal says multiple complaints were filed with the Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office, which led to the investigation.
In 2022, a $250 million school bond meant for a new high school, two new elementary schools and a renovation of Skyline High School failed to pass on the ballot during the November general election.
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It was the largest bond D91 had ever asked the public to approve, and 58% of voters said yes while 42% of voters said no.
The official complaint alleges that on Aug. 4, 2022, Wimborne ordered posters and postcards from Teton Printing relating to the bond issue. Twelve days later, the items were paid for in full with D91 funds of $635.40.
On Sept. 26, Wimborne ordered 7,925 bookmarks for the District 91 bond issue from Teton Printing. Sixteen days later, the bookmarks were paid in full using school district funds of $919.05.
On Oct. 10, Wimborne ordered a digital run and postage run of District 91 bond issue material from Alpha Graphics in the quantity of 24,101. Fourteen days later, it was paid in full using $12,649.60 in school district funds, according to the complaint.
The complaint alleges that both Shank and Wimborne admitted to Bonneville County investigators that district funds were used to produce bond material before the general election and that the material was distributed through the use of district schools and property.
Shank also reportedly admitted to authorizing the use of the funds to produce District 91 bond issue material and that opposition material was not allowed to be distributed in the same manner as pro-bond material in either distribution or in time at meetings.
Pending court proceedings, Wimborne and Shank could both be subject to fines of up to $1,500.