As Orange theft criminal defense lawyers, we were interested to read about the conviction of a woman who allegedly stole $70,000 from the city of La Habra, through a part-time job she had processing paperwork there. Kimberly Lynn Duncan, 24, pleaded guilty Sept. 7 to one count each of second-degree burglary, forgery and misappropriation of public funds. By pleading guilty, the Brea resident admitted to failing to deposit checks and credit card receipts into city accounts, presumably diverting the funds into her own accounts. A city councilman told the Orange County Register Sept. 7 that the theft had no effect on city services, but that he is glad Duncan admitted guilt. She will be sentenced on Nov. 9, when she will face up to five years and four months in prison. She may also be asked to repay the money she stole.
Duncan was a part-time clerical employee for La Habra (not the elected city clerk). In that capacity, she was responsible for depositing payments to the city every day. One source of those deposits was the La Habra Community Center, which took in money for classes, weddings and other events held at the center. Duncan admitted to stealing more than $26,500 in cash from the center that she was supposed to deposit with City Hall. She also admitted to failing to deposit another $24,000 in checks and $20,700 in credit card receipts. To achieve this, she forged the initials of City Hall and Community Center employees on checks, using a counterfeit City Hall stamp and filling out deposit forms fraudulently. The theft was only discovered when a resident called City Hall to complain that a month-old check had not yet been cashed.
Our Cerritos theft criminal defense attorneys noticed this case in part because Duncan's plea appears to be to charges less than the maximum prescribed for her crimes. Misappropriation of public funds, California Penal Code sec. 424, carries two to four years in prison as well as a lifetime ban on holding any public office. Commercial burglary and forgery each carry another year in prison. This could get Duncan up to six years in prison, not five years and four months. The article does not tell us whether these are the same charges Duncan originally faced, but we do notice that she could also have been charged with embezzlement -- the theft of funds entrusted to her. The potential sentence for this amount of embezzlement is slightly lower, but there is nothing to prevent prosecutors from attempting to get a conviction on both charges. Thus, we wonder if Duncan's guilty plea was in exchange for dropping a charge of embezzlement or another charge that fit the circumstances well and would have carried even more prison time.
Howard Law, P.C. defends people accused of all types of theft crimes, including fraud, embezzlement, extortion and more. Even when you're not barred for life from holding a government job, a theft conviction can cause serious problems when you are looking for a job later. That can be true even when the theft conviction is decades in the past and you have lived a good, law-abiding life ever since. That's why our Rancho Santa Margarita theft criminal defense lawyers work hard to keep a theft conviction off our clients' records whenever possible. In many cases, we can fight inappropriate, overreaching charges by negotiating them down to lesser charges or misdemeanors rather than felonies. In some cases, dropped charges are also possible in exchange for restitution. And of course, we fight wrongful charges vigorously in the courtroom.
If you're charged with theft or a related crime in California, you should call Howard Law, P.C. to learn more about how we can help. To set up a free consultation, contact us through our website or call 1-800-872-5925.
