A preliminary hearing was held on Monday at the Christian County Court House as former CEO of the Greater Taylorville Chamber of Commerce, Patty Hornbuckle had her first appearance in court for charges of Misappropriation of funds. The preliminary hearing began with State’s Attorney Brenda Mathis presenting questions to Christopher Adams, a Taylorville Detective, concerning funds moving in and out of chamber accounts.
During questioning, State’s Attorney Mathis inquired about funds totaling 146 thousand dollars meant to be paid as payroll and personal tax liability purposes. Both the State and Defense presented their cases concerning arguments over the amount of money and the location in which the money was transferred.
The sides deliberated for approximately 30 minutes with Judge Kibler reminding Defense Attorney Erickson that he was being more than reasonable with allowing the defense to present their side. Judge Kibler also stated that probable cause was found, Hornbuckle waved her arraignment and entered a plea of not guilty. Hornbuckle requested a trial by jury.
A pre-trial hearing is set for November 27th at 11:30 a.m.
