The former president of Lanikai Elementary Public Charter School’s parent teacher student association pleaded no contest in state court Friday to stealing at least $20,000 from the organization and to laundering at least $10,000 of that.

Tonya Taylor faces maximum 10-year prison terms each for first-degree theft and money laundering at sentencing in June. She has indicated, however, that she plans to ask for a deferral of her no-contest pleas to wipe a conviction from her record.

Deputy State Attorney General Christopher Young said he will ask state Circuit Judge Michael Wilson not to grant the deferrals. "We’re not happy that she didn’t plead guilty, admitting to what she did, but at least at this point we can get some resolution to this matter," he said.

Young said that from May 2007 to February 2011, Taylor stole $50,541 from the PTSA, known as the Lanikai School ‘Ohana, while she was president of the group. He said Taylor wrote organization checks to herself and for cash and made unauthorized purchases and automated teller machine cash withdrawals using the organization’s debit card.

The checks required a second signature besides Taylor’s which Young said was forged. He said Taylor deposited the checks into her personal bank account, then withdrew the money.

Young said Taylor also wrote organization checks to her husband and deposited them into his personal bank account. She later withdrew the money by writing checks from his account using forged signatures, all without her husband’s knowledge, Young said. Some of the checks she wrote from her husband’s account went to pay for rent, while the rest were made payable to her.

Taylor made the unauthorized ATM purchases at the Apple Store, Best Buy, Costco, Macy’s, Safeway, Times Supermarkets, Hawaiian Airlines, Hilton Waikoloa Village, Pacific Beach Hotel and a Shell gas station, Young said.

Defense lawyer Victor Bakke said Taylor disputes the amount the state wants her to pay back to the organization. He said the reason Wilson scheduled sentencing for June was to allow them to go over the state’s records.

"We haven’t agreed to any amount. This occurred over a four-year period, so as you can imagine, the accounting is quite extensive," Bakke said.

Young said Taylor’s actions came to light after there was a change in the leadership of the Lanikai School ‘Ohana and members began questioning why a shelter at the school for which the organization received a $24,900 grant from Lowe’s had not been built.