Criminal Trial Underway for Nebraska Notary on Medical Cannabis Petitions  

The criminal trial of a Nebraska notary accused of official
misconduct began on Monday. The Nebraska Examiner reports that Jacy C. Todd
is facing 24 misdemeanor charges related to his notary duties
for the Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana campaign that legalized medical
cannabis in the state in 2024.

Prosecutors allege that Todd, between January 29 and July 2, 2024,
notarized petitions on behalf of a Michael K. Egbert, a paid petition
circulator, who was not in Todd’s presence. The charges are Class II
misdemeanors which carry a maximum of six months’ imprisonment, a $1,000
fine, or both.

On Tuesday, Todd took the witness stand but could not explain why a couple
of the petitions at the heart of the case had the wrong notarized date –
Feb. 26, 2024, a date when Egbert was out of town.

“Perhaps I got a date wrong with that, I have no idea how. Like I
said, I’m only human. I just know it was accidental.” — Todd during
testimony via Nebraska Examiner

Todd testified that he would always witness a circulator sign their oath in
person but would occasionally go back to stamp or sign a notarization to
finish it later while overseeing his store and with dozens of petitions
coming in. Todd further testified that he was unaware that in 2024 the
complete notarization needed to occur while the signer and notary were in
the same place.

Egbert, who in 2024 pleaded guilty to a Class I misdemeanor of “attempting”
to falsify his circulator’s oath, has admitted to using a phone book to add
false signers to his petitions, forging signatures and fabricating birth
dates. Egbert alleges that Todd never witnessed Egbert’s oath in person
during the dates in question.