LINCOLN — Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen is seeking a criminal investigation into State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh of Omaha over removing and later returning part of a Nebraska Capitol display on American history from conservative nonprofit PragerU.

The governor released a statement Wednesday afternoon saying he and his team have “carefully consulted with law enforcement and members of the Legislature” and “concluded this warrants a criminal investigation by law enforcement.” Pillen says he told the Nebraska State Patrol to refer the materials from the incident to the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office.

On the first day of this year’s legislative session, Cavanaugh, a progressive lawmaker in the officially nonpartisan Legislature, removed the frames because she said, “We are not allowed to adhere anything to the walls in the hallway of the Capitol.”

She said that, typically, any such display would be placed near the information desk, not on the walls along the Capitol’s hallways.

Cavanaugh said she tried not to damage the artwork and called the State Patrol to let them know where to find the paintings. The patrol returned the posters to the Nebraska Capitol Commission, which Speaker John Arch said had approved the display’s use of the walls. The images were rehung later that day.  

Since then, the incident has been amplified by conservative influencers and media outlets after Pillen, a Republican, tweeted security footage of the incident and wrote that he was “disappointed in this shameful and selfish bad example.” 

No “apparent damage” was done to the art, a State Patrol spokesman said last week. He also said at the time that there was no active investigation of the incident. Cavanaugh apologized last week as State Sen. Jared Storm of David City asked the Legislature’s Executive Board to reprimand her for her actions.

State Sen. Ben Hansen of Blair, chair of the Legislature’s Executive Board, which handles internal issues of discipline, said the issue would be discussed during a closed portion of the meeting, but said Cavanaugh’s apologies were “sincere.” 

The Exec Board took no immediate action on Cavanaugh. 

Pillen, in his Wednesday statement, said, “Many Nebraskans and officials in the Capitol have expressed, if a private citizen had engaged in similar conduct, there would be a consequence for such misconduct.”

The nonprofit behind the images has faced criticism for sharing content that historians consider misleading and inaccurate. The latest display is part of a push from the Trump administration’s White House Task Force 250, outreach designed to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. President Donald Trump has endorsed Pillen’s 2026 reelection bid.

During a legislative session, Nebraska lawmakers can only be cited, not arrested, based on a provision of the state constitution meant to prevent outside interference in the Legislature’s actions.

Cavanaugh had no immediate comment.

Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

This story was published by Nebraska Examiner, an editorially independent newsroom providing a hard-hitting, daily flow of news. Read the original article: https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/nebraska-gov-jim-pillen-seeks-probe-of-state-sen-machaela-cavanaughs-prageru-art-incident/