Eugene Weekly’s former business manager pleaded guilty in Lane County Circuit Court March 24 on five felony counts of theft in the embezzlement case that nearly closed the newspaper forever.
Elisha Young, 38, will be sentenced on May 27. According to the Lane County District Attorney’s Office, Young faces 36 months in prison and two years of supervised release. The newspaper has also asked for restitution.
The plea and the pending sentencing “start to bring a feeling of closure” for staff and for the readers that saved the paper, says EW Publisher Jody Rolnick.
A grand jury indicted Young in April 2025 on three counts of aggravated theft in the first degree and two counts of theft in the first degree.
Aggravated theft in the first degree involves stealing more than $10,000. Each count carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence and/or a $250,000 fine. Theft in the first degree involves stealing more than $1,000 but less than $10,000. Each charge carries a maximum of five years in prison and/or a $125,000 fine.
Shortly after Christmas 2023, Eugene Weekly announced it had laid off its entire staff and would suspend printing after discovering a once-trusted employee had stolen at least $100,000. EW also discovered a previously unknown pile of unpaid bills totalling more than $200,000, including more than $70,000 owed to the printer.
The paper published online-only for six weeks, run by former staff and student journalists from the University of Oregon. EW rehired staff and returned to print in February 2024 after community members contributed more than $200,000 — mainly through small individual contributions — to save the newspaper.
“We are so grateful for the incredible outpouring of support and encouragement. It shows how important the paper is to our community,” Rolnick says.
The embezzlement made national and international headlines. And after the indictment, the story made headlines again when Gov. Tina Kotek’s office declined to extradite Young from Ohio. After public outcry, the governor reversed the decision and Young was extradited to Oregon in July 2025.
The paper’s owners at the time, Anita Johnson and Georga Taylor, have since died. Ownership of Eugene Weekly is being transitioned to Editor Camilla Mortensen, with a long-term plan to move the paper to nonprofit ownership to ensure it stays locally owned and community-focused.
Ross Taylor, one of the current owners, says, “The Taylor family appreciates the dedication and hard work of everyone involved to see this process through to the conclusion reached in court today. Many people were financially and mentally impacted by the embezzlement and breach of trust it caused to the paper’s employees, owners and the Eugene community.”