Lawyer Says Hunger Charity’s Head to Admit $180,000 Theft

Stan Curtis, the founder of national food charity USA Harvest, is expected to plead guilty next month to charges that he stole more than $180,000 from the organization he led, according to The Courier-Journal of Louisville.

Defense lawyer Scott C. Cox said Wednesday that he had negotiated an agreement with prosecutors and that Mr. Curtis faces a likely two-year prison term. The case had been set for trial July 15, but court records show a change of plea hearing has been scheduled for June 3.

Mr. Curtis was charged in September 2012 with stealing $183,354 directly from Louisville-based USA Harvest and charging more than $370,000 in personal expenses to the charity, which has won plaudits from President Clinton and celebrity support for its work collecting billions of pounds of leftovers from restaurants, hotels, and stores to feed the poor and hungry.

Mr. Cox had sought a ruling that the 64-year-old former stockbroker was incompetent to stand trial due to a brain disease known as Wernicke’s encephalopathy, which causes confusion and memory loss, but a federal judge ruled in December that Mr. Curtis is able to understand the charges and assist in his defense.