By:Zach Wendling
Nebraska Examiner
Gov. Jim Pillen, a former regent, says Regent Elizabeth O’Connor should ‘reflect on whether she should remain in a position of public trust’ if allegations are true
OMAHA — A Nebraska state senator is taking the first steps toward pursuing impeachment proceedings against a University of Nebraska regent charged with driving drunk in a crash that caused serious injuries.
State Sen. Kathleen Kauth of Omaha confirmed Examiner reporting that she is exploring what the Nebraska Legislature needs to do to consider articles of impeachment against NU Regent Elizabeth O’Connor of Omaha.
Kauth confirmed Saturday that she has discussed her plans with the Governor’s Office and top legislative leadership.
“This is such a grotesque abuse of public trust that it needs to be addressed,” Kauth told the Nebraska Examiner on Saturday.
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, who served as an NU regent between 2013 and 2023, including four years with O’Connor, told the Examiner that the charges against her are “extremely serious” while noting she remains innocent until proven guilty.
“If she knows the allegations against her to be true, I urge her to reflect on whether she should remain in a position of public trust,” Pillen said in a statement. “In any event, the question of impeachment is entrusted by our Constitution to the Legislature, and I respect the judgment of that body on this matter.”
‘Willing to start the proceedings’
Kauth is expected to announce her plans Sunday in her regular email to her constituents and supporters. Kauth is an influential lawmaker and committee chair, and her push marks the first legislative move toward removing O’Connor from office. Only the Legislature can do so if O’Connor doesn’t resign.
Authorities allege that O’Connor had a blood alcohol concentration of four times the legal limit, or 0.321%, at the time of a May 21 crash in Omaha’s Benson neighborhood in O’Connor’s district.
Kauth noted that a criminal trial could take time to resolve and said the Legislature should act now because lawmakers do not condone O’Connor’s alleged actions. Kauth said no one is above the law and that elected officials must be held to the highest standards.
Kauth added she is “appalled” that O’Connor has not resigned or made any indication she would resign for allegations Kauth called “absolutely inexcusable.” The senator called resigning the “honorable choice.”
“I’m willing to start the proceedings so we can make sure that at some point in time she is no longer representing the university,” Kauth said.
Impact of a felony charge
O’Connor, reelected in November to a second six-year term, has pleaded not guilty. Neither O’Connor nor her attorney had an immediate comment Saturday.
“My attorney has advised me of my rights, including the right to a jury trial; my right to confront accusers; to subpoena witnesses; to remain silent; to counsel; … and my right to be presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt,” O’Connor said in a May 28 filing in Douglas County District Court.
O’Connor, 35, is charged with one Class IIIA felony alleging that she drove under the influence and caused serious injury. A passenger in the opposing car suffered a broken back and pelvis, according to police and court records. Four others were in that car, including three young children. Both cars were totaled.
The father of the children injured in the crash started an online petition in recent weeks calling for O’Connor to lose her law license and resign as a regent after details of the case became public. As of Saturday, the petition had gathered nearly 800 signatures.
“These actions will not only hold her accountable but also serve as a firm reminder that such behavior is unacceptable for someone in her position,” the petition states.
Prosecutors filed charges against O’Connor July 30. Investigators transferred the case from the Douglas County Attorney’s Office, which normally handles felony charges, to the Omaha City Prosecutor’s Office because O’Connor, until early August, had worked as a deputy county attorney.
Impact of a felony
O’Connor and her attorney have yet to publicly discuss her fate as a regent. She has continued attending board meetings, including in June to approve the university’s budget.
NU campuses are considering more than $40 million in cuts. Regents are set to vote on the reductions package by the end of the year.
Under the Nebraska Constitution, someone convicted of a felony cannot hold public office. Constitutional officers can only be removed from office via legislative impeachment if they don’t resign.
If the Legislature impeaches O’Connor or she resigns, Pillen would choose her successor.
Speaker John Arch of La Vista had no immediate comment.
Impeachment steps
The Legislature can impeach an officeholder via a legislative resolution, which can be brought during a regular or special session. In the past, such resolutions have always followed a legislative investigation.
Past investigations have followed the formation of a special investigatory committee, a designated group of lawmakers who would investigate the incident and recommend whether to impeach a state official. Legislative rules require such a committee to be established during a legislative session, yet the committee could work only while lawmakers are out of session.
Lawmakers adjourned in June for the year and are not set to return until January.
Another option: An existing legislative committee with jurisdiction — possibly the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee — could hold a public hearing on whether to pursue a legislative investigation. Both approaches could have subpoena power.
It would take 25 legislative votes to impeach, a simple majority. Nothing would prevent Kauth or another lawmaker from pursuing a vote for impeachment without first pursuing an investigation, but the Nebraska Supreme Court requires “clear and convincing” legislative evidence to convict on articles of impeachment.
Nebraska’s 49-member Legislature, which is officially nonpartisan, has 33 registered Republicans, 15 Democrats and one nonpartisan progressive.
If the Legislature impeaches a state official, that person is barred from performing official duties until the state’s high court weighs in. At least five of seven justices would need to agree.
The Nebraska Legislature last impeached a state official in 2006. Lawmakers passed 10 articles of impeachment against then-NU Regent C. David Hergert related to alleged campaign finance violations by a 25-22 vote. Six Supreme Court justices convicted Hergert, removing and disqualifying him from public office.
‘Second chances’
O’Connor was elected in 2018 as the youngest regent ever, at 28 years old, and as one of just a handful of women to serve. She is a former University of Nebraska at Omaha student regent.
Regent Barbara Weitz of Omaha has defended O’Connor, saying the regent “takes responsibility for making a bad choice, but she’s also doing everything she can to make it right.” Weitz has described O’Connor as an “outstanding” regent who has NU’s best interests in mind.
“Of all the people I know who deserve second chances, she tops the list,” Weitz said previously.
The NU Board of Regents is officially nonpartisan but consists of 6 registered Republicans and 2 Democrats. Weitz and O’Connor are Democrats. Kauth and Pillen are Republicans.
Regents most often vote as one, and over the past seven years, across hundreds of votes, the board split 6-2 along party lines once. That was in April, when the regents amended NU bylaws to try to comply with an order from President Donald Trump’s administration against higher education diversity, equity and inclusion policies. Weitz and O’Connor opposed the changes.
Message of continued service
Kauth said O’Connor’s continued service risks an appearance that elected officials get a “free pass.” She said she is also concerned about the message to college students, that if they get drunk, “blitzed out of your mind and nearly kill someone” it could be seen as “no big deal.”
No state lawmaker believes a drunken driver should have more rights than injured victims facing a “cascading effect” of trauma, Kauth said. The senator said she would call for a Republican to resign if facing similar charges.
“Everyone has hard times,” Kauth said. “It does not excuse anyone from drinking and getting in a car, period.