AUSTIN, Texas (CN) - It's hard enough to be a poet without having a treasurer embezzle your money, but that's what an Austin nonprofit says happened to it.
Austin Poets International sued James L. Jacobs on July 30 in Travis County Court.
Calling itself a "pillar of the local arts community," Austin Poets says it had to file the lawsuit to preserve its existence as a nonprofit.
Austin Poets has three major programs: its Austin International Poetry Festival, which began in 1992; an annual di-verse-city poetry anthology for adults; and a youth anthology competition.
Austin has an active poetry scene, which includes the Austin Poetry Society and Austin Poetry Slam. Paid-up members of the Austin Poetry Society can compete in contests, meet with influential poets and receive poetry publications. The Austin Poetry Slam has weekly competitions and sometimes hosts national events.
Austin Poets International says it hired Jacobs as treasurer because it needed "competent, enthusiastic professionals to join the organization's governing body."
Jacobs took control of the records and finances and became the "only person with access and keys to API's post office box, and securing access to API's bank accounts, debit cards, and credit cards," according to the complaint.
The group says it began suffering financial problems after Jacobs took control of the books, though it had always been able to pay its bills and control its budget. But it found it was "suddenly facing budget shortfalls that threatened its ability to continue producing the annual poetry festival and its two publications," according to the complaint.
In March this year Jacobs offered to loan it money in exchange for a paid position as executive director, Austin Poets says. It says he offered to resign as treasurer for a monthly salary and commissions based on revenue.
But in June, the poets say, they "that the cause of the precipitating financial difficulties was Defendant himself."
"As far back as December of 2013, and perhaps earlier, he had been forging checks drawn on API's BBVA Compass Bank account. Defendant had also forged the signature of Lynn Wheeler-Brandstetter to open another Frost Bank account. ... The account opened through this forgery was initially funded with API money, including a $1,440 check from Manor Independent School District for children from that district to participate in API's annual poetry festival. Another deposit of $3,750 into that account [came] from the Texas Commission on the Arts via the Texas Comptroller. Defendant removed at least $3,098.65 over several different transactions, including cash withdrawals and transfers to his personal account," the complaint states. (Partial bank account numbers omitted.)
Austin Poets says Jacobs depleted two other of its bank accounts and there is another $20,750 in unaccounted liabilities attributed to him. It claims he also has equipment and property, including a laptop computer, that he bought using its money without authorization.
The group says when it tried to take back control, Jacobs took other steps to hurt it.
"(W) hen defendant learned that API had begun to discover the unauthorized transactions that had deprived API of thousands of dollars in funds and began closing accounts to prevent additional financial damages, defendant backdated a check from a now-closed BBVA Compass Bank account and attempted to deposit it into an account over which he had sole control - specifically, the Frost Bank account which he had opened with Lynn Wheeler-Brandstetter's forged signature," the complaint states.