Former Dartmouth Review Editor-in-Chief E. Davis Brewer '95 has been indicted for allegedly embezzling thousands of dollars from the off-campus conservative weekly, some of which may have helped pay his tuition bills.
Brewer wrote $8,500 in checks from The Review's Fleet Bank account to pay for personal expenses during and after his tenure as editor-in-chief in 1995 and the beginning of 1996, according to Emeritus English Professor Jeffrey Hart, a member of The Review's board.
Brewer, who did not graduate from the College with his class, was indicted Friday in Grafton County Superior Court for theft in excess of $1,000, a Class A felony punishable by a maximum of 15 years in jail and a $4,000 fine.
Review President Kevin Robbins '98 said Brewer used the stolen funds for a variety of personal expenses, but the "bottom line was he was short on tuition." Hart said Brewer wrote a check from the Review account to pay for $1,200 of his College tuition.
The current editor and president of the Review "discovered serious irregularities in checks drawn on the Review bank accounts" in the summer of 1996, according to a statement released by the Review.
"The irregularities consisted of check forgery and embezzlement of Review funds," the release states.
Brewer said he and The Review reached an agreement on the repayment of the funds, but he disputed the $8,500 figure.
"The sum settled on internally between The Review and myself this summer was less than $8,500, and a significant amount of that has already been repaid," Brewer said. He refused further comment on the matter.
The Review contacted the police "more in sorrow than in anger" when the board "lost confidence in [Brewer's] intention to repay the sum owed," according to the statement. It states that the Review leaves the case "entirely in the hands of the criminal justice system."
Hart said the Review tried the repayment plan before going to the police because "the high priority was to get back the money. We never thought it would reach the point where we'd have to move to criminal action."
The Review devised a plan for repayment of the money from the forged checks and embezzled funds, and in August Brewer signed the agreement to repay more than $7,000, according to Hart.
But after the agreement was signed, The Review found more checks, some of which appeared to have been written for personal use, raising the amount of the missing sum to more than $8,500, Hart said.
Robbins said the payment plan allowed Brewer to pay less while he was registered at the College and more on off-terms. He said the full amount was supposed to be paid off in June 1998.
Brewer began making payments in November but did not keep to his monthly payment schedule, so the Review staff turned the matter over to the Hanover Police Department, Hart said.
Hanover Police Detective-Sergeant Frank Moran, who presented the case in Grafton District Court Friday, said he received the complaint from the Review staff last month.
After examining the evidence, which included back checks provided by the Review staff, Moran determined the case "appeared valid." Moran said there will be an arraignment scheduled in the future at which Brewer will be read his charges and asked to enter a plea.
Under New Hampshire law, Brewer's indictment does not constitute an arrest. Moran said the "formal arresting" will not occur until the arraignment.
Hart said he is dismayed, because nothing like this has happened in the 16 years since the Review was established.
Brewer, an English major from Slingerlands, N.Y., is currently registered and taking classes at the College.
