Charges against the former director of a Durango nonprofit who was accused of embezzling $21,000 from the organization have been dismissed under the terms of a diversion agreement reached with prosecutors in the 6th Judicial District.
Ashley Hein, the former director of 4 The Children, was issued a summons in February after law enforcement found probable cause of multiple crimes including felony theft and embezzlement of public property.
The terms of the agreement are unknown because all records associated with the case were sealed.
In response to a motion filed by The Durango Herald to unseal the records, Judge Suzanne Carlson wrote that the court was required to seal the case because the charges were dismissed after Hein completed a diversion agreement.
Hein led 4 The Children for four years, beginning in 2018. The organization serves children who have experienced abuse, neglect and family trauma in La Plata, Montezuma, Archuleta, Dolores and San Juan counties.
She was accused of using the organization’s debit cards on personal expenses at City Market, Lively Boutique, Gandolf’s Smoke Shop and Durango Organics Marijuana Dispensary, among other places throughout her tenure.
Hein responded to a request for comment through her attorney, Ryan Brungard.
In an email, Brungard said he and Hein were not interested in discussing the case at length given that it had been closed.
“There was so much more to the case as there always is,” he wrote. “There was a significant amount of discovery and information reviewed and exchanged in the case. We took major issue with the assertions of criminal culpability against Ms. Hein from the start. Ms. Hein cooperated and was transparent throughout the investigation.”
He also noted that his client’s nonprofit leadership and fiscal responsibility has been described as “impeccable.”
District Attorney Sean Murray said he was barred from speaking specifically about the case because it had been sealed.
However, he said that in general, financial crimes cases can be difficult to prove and that forensic analysis is often needed in cases where someone is accused of abusing access to their employer’s money.
“It becomes almost impossible, to a certain extent, to figure out what necessarily is being purchased,” he said. “… When you go back and there’s this accusation that something was a criminal personal expenditure, some instances of that are easier to prove than others.”
A diversion agreement is a path out of the judicial system that “holds people accountable for their actions and for repairing harm to victims of crime,” according to the state’s judicial branch.
In a prepared statement, 4 the Children said the diversion agreement was best for the organization. The nonprofit will continue serving and supporting abused and neglected children, it said.
“4 the Children is disheartened by the actions of the former executive director,” the statement read. “We appreciate the support provided by the Sheriff’s Office and the Deputy District Attorney over the last few years.”
rschafir@durangoherald.com
