photo by: Nick Krug

Former Lawrence Mayor Jeremy Farmer enters the Frank Carlson Federal Building on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2016, in Topeka. Farmer was appearing on a charge of embezzling funds during his time as the executive director of Just Food.

While Lawrence’s former mayor, Jeremy Farmer, awaits sentencing for his recent felony conviction of interstate transportation of stolen funds, it remains unclear if he will be ordered to pay back the money he took.

Though Farmer’s conviction states that he stole more than $5,000, the Lawrence food bank he stole from, Just Food, estimates the actual amount of ill-gotten money is closer to $55,000.

Jim Cross, public information officer for acting U.S. Attorney Tom Beall, declined to comment on Farmer’s case specifically and said any possible order for Farmer to pay back stolen money will be entirely up to Kansas Federal Court Judge Carlos Murguia, who is handling the case.

“The judge is the one who decides if there is restitution and how much it’s going to be,” he said.

Farmer pleaded guilty to the single felony charge on Sept. 28. He could face prison time, fines and orders to pay restitution. In addition, Farmer may be ordered to forfeit his personal assets to make up for the stolen money.

Cross said that when restitution orders come from a judge in federal court, the matter is then forwarded to the District of Kansas’ Financial Litigation Unit, which is then responsible for collecting the money.

The system works similarly in Douglas County District Court, except restitution orders are passed on to Katy Nitcher, the District Court Trustee.

Nitcher said that since the late 1990s her office has been charged with collecting more than $3 million in court-ordered restitution. To date, $1,017,000 in restitution remains outstanding, she said.

For the most part, those ordered to pay restitution do so willingly, Nitcher said. And when they don’t, the penalties can range from jail time to other financial penalties, depending on the payer’s probation status or other legal matters.

However, Nitcher said lack of payment is relatively uncommon.

When someone is ordered to pay restitution, Nitcher’s office will work with them to make sure payments are made. A payment plan can be established or wages can be garnished, she said.

For example: In September 2005, the former head of the Lawrence teachers union, Wayne Kruse, pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $95,000 in union dues.

Sentenced in October 2005, Kruse avoided prison time but was ordered to pay $95,384 in restitution.

Nitcher said Kruse began paying the money back almost immediately.

“He has a very good pay record,” she said. “His sentencing was on October 3, and his first payment was that same day.”

Since his conviction, Nitcher said, Kruse’s typical payments have been around $200, either biweekly or monthly.

Currently, Lawrence Municipal Court has $143,379 in outstanding debt due to court-ordered restitution, said Court Administrator Vicki Stanwix.

Before his conviction, Farmer admitted to stealing from Just Food between 2013 and 2015. He was hired as the nonprofit’s executive director in 2011.

In August 2015, Farmer resigned both from his position at Just Food and his seat on the Lawrence City Commission after it was revealed he had not paid more than $50,000 in federal and state payroll taxes on behalf of Just Food.

At the time Farmer said the taxes were unpaid because of an oversight.

After Farmer’s conviction, Just Food’s Board President, Will Katz, said the nonprofit, for planning purposes, was not counting on getting the money back from Farmer.

Murguia ordered the completion of a pre-sentence investigation in Farmer’s case. Depending on Farmer’s criminal history, which is included in the investigation, he could face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Sentencing will be at a later date.