And the summer 2006 meetings with Mountainland Association of Governments and the Utah Lake Commission? They were cancelled. But Olsen did cash the checks written to reimburse him for supposedly going to all those activities.
Those were the few areas of agreement between prosecutors and Olsen's attorney at his trial Tuesday on misusing public funds. Olsen, 36, is facing seven counts of the third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
The defense is expected to present its case Wednesday. The trial in 4th District Court could go to the jury by Wednesday afternoon.
During Tuesday's hearing, current and former employees of the city in northwestern Utah County testified that Olsen had asked for checks to be made out in advance of travel, became agitated when his executive assistant noted he wasn't at a meeting he said he attended, and tried to have one voucher amended when he reimbursed the city for one trip he didn't take.
Olsen said he was unable to go because his pregnant wife was on bed-rest at that time.
"He said he was going to bring us in a check," said Lori Jolley, an accounting clerk with the city. "He said it was going to look bad and that he had a lot of enemies."
Jolley said the check was received Oct. 19 but was backdated to Oct. 8.
But prosecutors say that was the only time Olsen paid back extra money.
"At that time, did he also say, 'Hey, while we're at it, can I reimburse the city for six other conferences I didn't attend?' " Deputy Utah County Attorney Craig Johnson asked Penny Thompson, who was an accounts-receivable clerk. She said he didn't.
But Ron Yengich, Olsen's attorney, said Olsen did write two other checks earlier that year to refund overcharges. He reiterated his earlier defense that Olsen was trying his best to follow city policy.
The defense attorney also grilled Sgt. Patricia Johnston, the county investigator who looked into Olsen's case, about her failing to read the policy before the trial began, as well as not examining all of Olsen's expense forms in detail.
Johnston said she would have still recommended filing the charges because one of the people who alerted prosecutors was City Attorney Gerald Kinghorn.
"If he felt Olsen was complying with the policy, I would not have signed off [on the charges]," Johnston said.
