Time running out for accused thief

SANDPOINT — A Bonner County woman who claims a benefactor will bail her out of a embezzlement case is being given a last chance to make good on the promise.

Nicole Jody Lynn Love has until May 4 to come up with restitution in the case or face a three-day jury trial in 1st District Court. Her trial is set to begin on May 16.

The amount of proposed restitution is not yet being disclosed. Court records allege Love embezzled as much as $46,000 from CityServiceValCon, a Montana-based fuel distributor with a retail location in Oldtown.

The state and the defense, however, have disagreed over the amount of restitution Love should be made to pay.

Love, a former assistant manager, was charged with grand theft after she willfully failed to deposit the Oldtown store’s cash receipts in 2010, according to court documents.

During a pretrial hearing on Thursday, Judge Charles Hosack granted Love another continuance and set a trial date in the event Love is unable to make a lump-sum restitution payment.

“It needs to be resolved,” Hosack said of the case, which has been pending for nearly two years.

Love, 35, is free on her own recognizance while the case is pending.