Opening Statements Made in Hubbard Trial

Opening statements were made Wednesday in the trial of former Beverly Hills Unified School District Superintendent Jeffrey Hubbard, who is facing three felony misappropriation of public funds charges.

Two of the charges stem from Hubbard’s time supervising former BHUSD facilities director Karen Christiansen. She was to four years and four months in prison after being in November of four felony conflict of interest counts.

Hubbard allegedly approved two payments of $10,000 and a $500 car allowance raise for Christiansen without school board consent. He also was charged with authorizing a pay increase to former BHUSD employee Nora Roque in May 2005 without the board’s approval.  

Superintendent of the Newport-Mesa Unified School District since July 2006, Hubbard has pleaded not guilty to all three charges.  

Deputy District Attorney said Wednesday in his opening statement that the evidence would show that the BHUSD board never authorized the three pay increases. 

“She had a contract that was very specific what her benefits were,” Huntsman said.

Christiansen’s contract offered a $150 monthly car allowance, he noted, and any changes to the contract were supposed to be made in writing. 

Defense attorney Salvatore P. Ciulla said “there was no intent to deceive or be discreet,” and urged the Los Angeles Superior Court jury to “keep an open mind” in the case against his client.

Huntsman also told jurors that Hubbard and Christiansen exchanged “flirtatious” messages when they worked together, referring to dozens of last year by The Orange County Register that suggested an intimate relationship between the two.

Ciulla acknowledged that some of the emails the onetime colleagues exchanged were “not very professional,” while reiterating that “there was no intimate relationship between the two.”

Hubbard would lose his teaching and administrative credentials—and hence his job at NMUSD—if he is found guilty, the Daily Pilot reported Dec. 31.

“I am hopeful for a similar outcome with the Hubbard trial as we saw in the Christiansen matter...a conviction on any of the counts will ensure that Hubbard will never be able to take advantage of another district again,” said BHUSD board President Brian Goldberg, who joined the board after Hubbard was hired. “This is a very sad chapter for our district and I hope it will serve as a lesson to future boards about what can happen when board members do not exercise their fiduciary responsibilities to provide oversight of those entrusted with public funds.”

This story was compiled with information from City News Service. 

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