Kimble Goodman, the former treasurer of Benicia Old Town Theatre Group, will be arraigned at 8:30 a.m. Feb. 20 in Vallejo on a sole charge of embezzlement, Judge Tim Kam decided Friday in Solano County Superior Court.

Goodman, who also is the former chairperson of Benicia’s Economic Development Board, waived his right to a preliminary hearing that was to take place Monday.

The charge stems from the discovery by the theater company’s board of directors that its bank accounts were empty or overdrawn. In addition, checks sent to pay for play royalties had bounced, as a result of which organizations that provide theater groups with rights to produce plays were declining to do business with the BOTTG board.

Goodman, who previously had a career with Wells Fargo Bank, had been the theater group’s treasurer since 2010. He was arrested April 16, 2013, and accused of embezzling thousands of dollars from the theater company’s several bank accounts.

Negotiations with performance rights companies, donations from the public and revenues from grants and other sources have kept the 50-year-old theater group in business despite the loss.

At a readiness conference Dec. 20, 2013, Goodman said he would plead no contest to the charge and begin paying restitution. However, he has since changed attorneys several times, and in multiple hearings his representatives kept asking Kam for continuances while they gathered evidence and consulted with their client.

Deputy District Attorney Leo Mangoba said he has offered Goodman 120 days in jail and the opportunity to pay $10,972.50 in restitution, which theater representatives said was the amount currently documented as missing.

“We’re disputing that,” BOTTG board President Dan Clark said. He and theater publicist Dyanne Vojvoda have estimated the loss could be as high as $20,000.

On the other hand, she said, “We’re ready for this nightmare to end.”

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