Former Editor-in-Chief of The Dartmouth Review E. Davis Brewer '95 pled guilty to charges of embezzling funds from the off-campus conservative weekly in a hearing before the Grafton County Superior Court on July 29.
Brewer's offense, which is classified as theft by unauthorized taking of an amount in excess of $5,000, is a Class A felony and carries a maximum sentence of seven-and-a-half to 15 years in state prison and a $4,000 fine.
But Grafton County Clerk of Court Robert Muh said Brewer entered a plea agreement requesting a sentence of one year imprisonment in the house of corrections, two years of probation and restitution.
Brewer will have to come before the Superior Court in 45 to 60 days to be sentenced when the Department of Corrections completes a pre-sentence investigation report, Muh said.
This report will make a recommendation for an appropriate sentence for Brewer based on whether or not Brewer has a prior record, an interview with Brewer for his version of the offense, interviews with The Review staff and all other pertinent facts in the case, he said.
Brewer said in a telephone interview yesterday from his home in Slingerlands, N.Y. that he does not have any comments at this time.
Brewer was indicted in February for writing over $8,500 in checks from The Review account to pay for personal expenditures during and after his tenure as editor-in-chief in 1995 and the beginning of 1996. He pled not guilty at his arraignment in March.
Emeritus English Professor Jeffrey Hart, one of the members of The Review's board, told The Dartmouth in February that Brewer had paid $1,200 of his tuition from The Review's account.
According to a statement released by The Review after the indictment, former president Kevin Robbins '98 and former editor-in-chief James Panero '98 "discovered serious irregularities in checks drawn from The Review" last summer.
Brewer previously told The Dartmouth he and The Review had agreed on a repayment schedule.
He claimed he owed less than $8,500, and added "a significant amount of that has already been repaid."
But according to Hart, The Review found more checks after the agreement was signed which meant Brewer had allegedly embezzled more than $8,500.
Hart previously told The Dartmouth the payment plan called for Brewer to repay the $7,000 in forged checks and embezzled funds by June 1998.
The Review contacted the Hanover Police Department when Brewer did not meet the payment schedule, Hart said.
Hart previously told The Dartmouth he was dismayed because nothing like this had happened in The Review's 16-year-history.
Brewer, who did not graduate with his class in 1995, is an English major.
Hart was not available for comment and current Review editor-in-chief A. J. Monaco '98 said he did not know enough about the case to make a statement.
