Conviction of Former Museum Chief Upheld

The embezzlement conviction of the Southwest Museum’s former director has been upheld by a state appeals court, the attorney general’s office announced this week.

Patrick Houlihan was convicted in 1993 of removing about 20 valuable baskets, tapestries and paintings from the museum’s renowned Native American collection and secretly selling or trading them.

In a 45-page decision, the state appeals court refused to overturn the conviction.

“It’s an affirmation of the original jury decision,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Alexis de la Garza, who prosecuted the case.

Houlihan, who is credited with modernizing the operation of the Mt. Washington-area museum, admitted during the trial that he took the items--some of which were appraised at more than $100,000--but maintained that any transactions involving them were for the benefit of the museum.

His lawyer said that contention would be the basis of an appeal they hope to bring before the state Supreme Court. “It’s our belief that he can’t be found guilty of theft,” said attorney George Buehler, “so long as he did it for the purpose of benefiting the museum.”

The prosecution, however, produced evidence during the trial that the proceeds from the sale of at least one item, a 19th-Century Navajo poncho, were used by Houlihan toward the purchase of a house.