UPDATED: UNL professor cited for vandalizing Fischer office, Fortenberry sign

UPDATE:

Lincoln police have released a timeline of events leading up to the citation given to UNL professor Patricia Wonch-Hill for three vandalism incidents in October.

Wonch Hill was given a citation for all three cases of vandalism.

According to LPD, all three incidents took place on October 21st. 

A finger print analysis of the fingerprints left on a sign came back as a match for Wonch-Hill’s prints on November 13th.

LPD said it tried to reach out to Fortenberry for the first time on November 29th regarding the case, but did not hear back from him on whether to press charges until February 15th.

Here is the full timeline provided from Lincoln Police:

October 21st: all three vandalism incidents reported.

November 12th: finger print analysis completed.

November 13th: prints analyzed came back as a match for Patricia Wonch-Hill.

November 26th: Team detective contacted the City Attorney’s office to ask if they agreed the case met the statutory definition for the city ordinance regarding vandalism. They were briefed on all cases believed to be connected and agreed the cases met the vandalism definition and they would file on the citation.

November 29th: Team detective attempted to contact Congressman Jeff Fortenberry but he was unavailable. 
Team detective made several more attempts to contact the Congressman but did not receive a call back.

February 15th: the Lincoln Police Department heard back from Congressman Fortenberry and Senator Fischer and they both wanted to press charges and have a citation issued against Wonch-Hill.

February 19th: citation issued to Wonch-Hill. The single citation was for all three cases of vandalism. 

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A University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor was cited for vandalizing property of two Nebraska representatives. 

LPD said Patricia Wonch Hill, 38, was cited Tuesday for three counts of vandalism. 

Fingerprint evidence linked her to three cases, one being Senator Deb Fischer’s Lincoln office, police said.

Police said it also linked her to a case where a campaign sign of U.S. Representative Jeff Fortenberry was defaced with googly eyes and the spelling of his name was altered. 

The incident, which was reported in October, included stickers from a political group known as Betsy Riot, police said. 

Estimated damage to the sign was about $100. 

Police said Wonch Hill could face more citations as their investigation continues. 

UNL’s website lists Wonch Hill as an research assistant professor of sociology. 

A UNL spokeswoman released a statement to Channel 8 Eyewitness News following the news. 

“We do not condone vandalism,” the statement said. “However, this is a personal legal matter based on actions of a faculty member on their own time, and they will have to take accountability for their actions based on the outcome of the legal process.

A second statement was also given in response to specific questions from Channel 8 Eyewitness News about how the allegations against Wonch Hill might impact her employment:

“The University’s bylaw clearly state: ‘Staff members who violate laws prescribed by civil authorities may incur penalties attached to such laws. The University should not impose sanctions to duplicate the function of these laws.” 

Calls to a direct number listed for Wonch Hill on the UNL website gave an automated response that said the number was no longer in service.