Former Beverly Hills schools superintendent Jeffrey Hubbard, was convicted Monday on two felony charges of misappropriation of public funds, the Los Angeles Times reported this week. Hubbard, who is currently superintendent of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District, was convicted of ordering $20,000 in bonuses for an administrator and increasing her car allowance to $500 a month without approval from the school board.
The administrator to whom he gave the bonuses was Karen Anne Christiansen, a former facilities director. During the trial, sexually suggestive emails between the two of them were revealed, suggesting that the misappropriation was no accident, but a deliberate attempt to reward someone with whom he was having a “special relationship.”
Hubbard faces up to five years in prison when he is sentenced Feb. 23. It remains to be seen how his current employer will deal with the news, though state officials have suggested that he will be allowed to keep his education credentials. Newport Beach and Costa Mesa school trustees are meeting in closed session today "to take appropriate action."
