Clandestino
10-03-2005, 06:53 PM
NEW: Former library assistant at UTSA gets 10 years' probation in $200,000 theft
Web Posted: 10/03/2005 04:25 PM CDT
Matt Flores
Express-News Staff Writer
A judge on Monday sentenced a former UTSA employee to 10 years' probation after she was convicted last March of stealing more than $200,000 in fines and other fees from the university's library.
As a condition of her probation, Gloria C. Gonzalez also must pay restitution over the period and perform 500 hours of community service.
Before sentencing Gonzalez, 399th District Judge Juanita Vasquez-Gardner took into account that the former UTSA library assistant on Monday produced a check for $9,500 to apply toward her restitution. The judge in April had given Gonzalez six months to show a “good-faith” effort in paying off the amount.
“I am impressed with your efforts to pay restitution,” Vasquez-Gardner told Gonzalez.
After she was sentenced, Gonzalez walked to the back of the courtroom to awaiting relatives, then sobbed.
Prosecutor Miguel Najera had asked the court to reject Gonzalez' plea for probation, saying that the defendant continued to refuse responsibility for the offense. But after the hearing, he noted there was an advantage to having Gonzalez out of prison and working.
“It's certainly important to get that money back to taxpayers,” Najera said.
Defense attorney Robert Valdez said Gonzalez, who had no criminal history and was a mother to three children, was an ideal candidate for probation. He said she was currently working and that she would have to make regular payments to maintain her probation.
During her trial, a UTSA auditor had testified that $208,736 had been taken in library fines, interlibrary loan fees and fees for lost books during a six-year period she was employed at the library.
Web Posted: 10/03/2005 04:25 PM CDT
Matt Flores
Express-News Staff Writer
A judge on Monday sentenced a former UTSA employee to 10 years' probation after she was convicted last March of stealing more than $200,000 in fines and other fees from the university's library.
As a condition of her probation, Gloria C. Gonzalez also must pay restitution over the period and perform 500 hours of community service.
Before sentencing Gonzalez, 399th District Judge Juanita Vasquez-Gardner took into account that the former UTSA library assistant on Monday produced a check for $9,500 to apply toward her restitution. The judge in April had given Gonzalez six months to show a “good-faith” effort in paying off the amount.
“I am impressed with your efforts to pay restitution,” Vasquez-Gardner told Gonzalez.
After she was sentenced, Gonzalez walked to the back of the courtroom to awaiting relatives, then sobbed.
Prosecutor Miguel Najera had asked the court to reject Gonzalez' plea for probation, saying that the defendant continued to refuse responsibility for the offense. But after the hearing, he noted there was an advantage to having Gonzalez out of prison and working.
“It's certainly important to get that money back to taxpayers,” Najera said.
Defense attorney Robert Valdez said Gonzalez, who had no criminal history and was a mother to three children, was an ideal candidate for probation. He said she was currently working and that she would have to make regular payments to maintain her probation.
During her trial, a UTSA auditor had testified that $208,736 had been taken in library fines, interlibrary loan fees and fees for lost books during a six-year period she was employed at the library.