May 30, 2014

Luzerne County Court Employee Charged Federally with Stealing County Funds

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that a criminal information was filed in U.S. District Court in Scranton charging Luzerne County Court employee Stacey McGlone, age 37, of McAdoo, Pennsylvania, with stealing in excess of $5,000 from the Luzerne County Probation/Parole office, under the supervision of the County Court of Common Pleas, during the course of her employment with that office.

According to United States Attorney Peter Smith, McGlone was responsible for the collection of funds from individuals receiving services associated with the Probation/Parole Office, as well as debts owed by those individuals, including fines, costs, and restitution debts incurred in connection with court proceedings. McGlone allegedly failed to make proper disposition of funds that came into her possession by reason of her employment. The Information charges that between January 2009 and March 2014, McGlone stole in excess of $5,000 in cash from payments she collected.

Federal jurisdiction to prosecute the case is based on the fact that Luzerne County and the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas each received more than $10,000 in federal funds annually.

The government also filed a plea agreement with McGlone which must be approved by the U.S. District Court.

McGlone faces up to 10 years in prison and fines in the amount of $250,000. McGlone’s employment with Luzerne County and the Court of Common Pleas has been terminated.

The prosecution is the result of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office. Prosecution is assigned to Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski.

Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

A sentence following a finding of guilty is imposed by the judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

In this case, the maximum penalty under the federal statute is 10 years’ imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances, and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public, and provide for the defendant’s educational, vocational, and medical needs. For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.