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LINCOLN — Former State Sen. Dan McKeon of Amherst has been accepted into a diversion program as an alternative to prosecution for a disturbing the peace misdemeanor charge in Lancaster County.
In a two-page court filing Monday, McKeon requested that Lancaster County Court Judge Matt Acton delay McKeon’s trial until Aug. 28. Acton was set to preside over a bench trial for McKeon beginning at 2 p.m. Thursday.
Prosecutors from the Lancaster County Attorney’s Office did not object. Lancaster County Attorney Pat Condon told the Examiner that, like anyone with a charge eligible for diversion, McKeon applied and was accepted.
“If he completes his diversion, the charge will be dismissed,” Condon said Tuesday. “I spoke with the victim, and she knew this was a possibility.”
The Monday filing states of the August rescheduling: “A brief continuance is therefore necessary to allow defendant adequate time to complete his diversion meetings and for the diversion program to confirm full compliance and close the case.”
McKeon faced a Class III misdemeanor charge stemming from allegations that he inappropriately touched a legislative staffer during an end-of-session party last May, according to the Nebraska State Patrol. The charge carries a maximum sentence of three months in jail or a $500 fine, or both.
McKeon’s attorney, Perry Pirsch, declined to comment Wednesday morning.
Kathleen Neary, the attorney representing the staffer who made the allegation against McKeon, said in a statement to the Examiner that she and her client “are pleased that Mr. McKeon finally realized that his continued attack on my client’s credibility and reputation was futile.”
“She told the truth. He didn’t,” Neary said. “We are hopeful that Mr. McKeon receives the appropriate services through diversion that will result in a favorable future for him.”
The Examiner is aware of the alleged victim’s name but is not publishing it because it is the policy of States Newsroom and the Examiner not to identify people who say they have been abused unless they wish to talk publicly.
A criminal investigation by the State Patrol initially led to McKeon being cited for misdemeanor public indecency in October, a Class II misdemeanor. Prosecutors ultimately charged him with disturbing the peace, a Class III misdemeanor.
McKeon resigned from the Legislature on Jan. 13, minutes before debate was set to begin on a resolution to expel him, which, if successful, would have been a first in Nebraska. He also faced what the Legislature’s Executive Board described as a “demonstrated pattern of behavior,” based on the results of an internal investigation — an allegation McKeon denies.
McKeon initially planned to plead “no contest” to the charge, but he changed course and pleaded not guilty after the Exec Board recommended expulsion. He has denied any inappropriate conduct.
Gov. Jim Pillen, who was among the first to call for McKeon’s resignation after he was charged, appointed former State Sen. Fred Meyer of St. Paul to the vacant seat the next day. The candidates are Jeremy Heneger of Cairo, Joe Johnson of Kearney and Jacob Sikes of Riverdale. Two of the three will advance from a May 12 primary to the Nov. 3 general election to fill out the final two years of McKeon’s term.
Neither McKeon nor Meyer filed to run for the election, for which both were eligible.
Nebraska Examiner Editor-in-chief Aaron Sanderford contributed to this report.
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