Kid’s football league thief to repay $13,000
A woman who stole money from a children's football league will repay nearly $13,000 and perform community service, a judge ruled this week.
Diann L. Brown, 50, was sentenced Tuesday to 30 days in jail with credit for one day served, but the sentence was converted to 232 hours of community service.
Brown pleaded guilty to second-degree theft before Judge Maryann Moreno. She was charged in May 2009 with stealing from the Pop Warner Football League where she worked as treasurer.
The league was started by a certified accountant and reserve officer with the Spokane Police Department, Steve Larsen, who began investigating embezzlement claims in 2007 after noticing suspicious activity in the organization's bank account.
Brown, who had been appointed treasurer in January 2007, was removed from the board of directors, then wrote an e-mail to Larsen: “If you think I did anything wrong or inappropriate with the funds for Pop Warner,” Brown wrote, according to court documents. “… if you feel I owe Pop Warner any money, please give me an amount and I will gladly pay it.”
Now a convicted felon, Brown will be on probation for a year and is to repay the Pop Warner Football League $12,658.