CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The sentencing for a Charleston man convicted of embezzling more than $60,000 from the organization formerly known as the West Virginia Healthy Kids and Families Coalition has been pushed back.
Christopher Kimes, 39, was to be sentenced Monday in the embezzlement case but Kanawha County Circuit Judge Tod Kaufman reset it for March 18th at 1:15.
Kaufman said he wants to hear from those associated with the organization including former director and gubernatorial candidate Stephen Smith and current director Jennifer Wells.
“There are no statements from the principals of the organization that seeks to have been embezzled from, there’s no itemization from the organization that was embezzled from in terms of the amount of money that is proposed for restitution,” Kaufman said in a brief hearing on Monday.
“There’s no comment after one was promised by the institution of children to statement what their position was on this.”
Kimes was convicted on one count each of embezzlement and computer fraud for transferring $62,457.66 between July 2016 and December 2018, while he was the director of political affairs for the coalition.
Kaufman said Wells and Smith both have a right to give a victim impact statement under the law and he wants to give them that opportunity.
In February, the organization West Virginia Healthy Kids and Families Coalition merged with Our Children Our Future to create Our Future West Virginia.