DAWNS House founder Dawn Holland pleads not guilty to 8 counts of aggravated theft; March trial date set

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – The founder of DAWNS House, a Bend nonprofit that provides housing for women recovering from addiction, pleaded not guilty Friday to eight counts of aggravated first-degree theft, accused of stealing more than $300,000 from the organization.

A March trial date was set for Dawn Holland, 52, who participated by phone in the brief plea hearing before Deschutes County Circuit Judge Randy Miller. He set a three-day jury trial for March 12 and a trial readiness hearing for March 4.

Holland was arrested in May on 10 Class B felonies, accused of stealing the money from DAWNS ((Directly Assisting Women Newly Sober) House since 2019, the year she was named the Bend Chamber’s Woman of the Year. She was taken into custody at the Bend Police Department on an outstanding warrant and released from jail that day after posting 10% of her $50,000 bail.