Court date continued for former local dance show organizer

It will be three months before Stanley Travis Stancil, the former organizer of Morganton’s Dancing with the Burke Stars, sees another day in court.

Stancil, 29, of Boynton Beach, Fla., received a continuance on Monday, pushing his next appearance to April 6. His attorney, Lisa Dubs, said the case was in its early stages and declined to comment on specifics.

“He has entered pleas of not guilty,” she said. “My client maintains his innocence.”

Dubs filed a motion for discovery in late November, requesting any files concerning the crime that the state may possess.

“The state’s required to turn over the complete files of law enforcement and other agencies related to the investigation,” Dubs said. “Honestly, I don’t think we’ve received all of them, but I don’t know, I haven’t looked. So, the answer should be, I just can’t comment on it.”

On Oct. 16, a grand jury indicted Stancil on two counts of obtaining property on false pretense and four counts of embezzlement — all Class H felonies that could carry sentences ranging from four to 25 months per count.

According to court documents, Stancil allegedly took funds from residents of Burke and Catawba counties by advertising Dancing with the Burke Stars and Dancing with the Catawba Valley Stars as charity shows, before pocketing the money.

The documents also allege that he obtained a discounted nonprofit rate for renting the J.E. Broyhill Civic Center from Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute by claiming that Your Big Break Inc., an Arizona-based nonprofit organization, was hosting the charity benefit show, when the entity hosting and receiving the funds was Stance Productions, LLC, a for-profit company.

After Stancil returned to Burke County on Oct. 29, the sheriff’s office served his arrest warrant. He posted his $10,000 secured bond minutes later.

With no conditions on the release order aside from fingerprint collection, Stancil was able to return home and await his next court date.