No Jail Time in Davis School District Book Fraud Case
Updated: 12/14/2009 10:10:01 PM MST
A former Davis School District official will serve no prison time for stealing $350,000 in a textbook-purchasing scheme.
Susan Ross, 65, was sentenced Monday to 36 months probation, 3,000 hours of community service, $10,000 in fines and a $350,000 restitution after pleading guilty to felony money laundering.
“I’ve severely tarnished my professional reputation,” Ross said. She began working for the district in the 1970s and retired as the director of federal programs in 2005.
Ross and her husband, John D. Ross, were each accused in 2006 of 47 counts of fraud, theft, money laundering and copyright infringement. The indictment claimed they sold photocopies of books to schools that receive federal Title 1 money to help disadvantaged students at vastly inflated prices through an intermediary company, which kept a small percentage of the profit and paid the rest to a company owned by the Rosses.
U.S. District Judge Clark Waddoups will receive some heavy criticism for what appears to be a light sentence for this highly publicized fraud, but most of the charges were reduced during trial and the crime apparently didn’t match the rhetoric of it. These are tough decisions for judges, and in this case, no matter your view of the case, Waddoups showed a lot of courage with this charitable sentence. We know none of the players in the case, but we believe that judges are in the best position to determine fair and just sentences.
All of the charges were dismissed except for the fraud charge Ross pleaded. John Ross, the former Title I specialist for the Utah Office of Education and grant specialist for the Davis district, pleaded guilty last month to a misdemeanor count of aiding and abetting fraudulent copyright notice. He admitted helping his wife reproduce and distribute articles that falsely represented that she was the original author. He was ordered to pay a $500 fine.
He and Susan Ross together have forfeited $786,000 in cash; homes in Layton, South Weber and Mountain Green; and two vehicles.
The original indictment accused the Rosses of stealing about $4.3 million, but U.S. District Judge Clark Waddoups said the crime cost the district $350,000.
“This is not a case in which millions of dollars were stolen from the Davis School District,” Waddoups said. Ross charged “not an unreasonable amount for the goods that were received.”
The $350,000 was paid to the intermediary company, according to a sentencing memo by prosecutors.
Waddoups said Susan Ross’ work for the district “helped many students succeed.”
“She raised millions of dollars in grant funding … and developed programs over the years for less fortunate children,” Waddoups said.
Prosecutors had asked for a sentence of 27 months in prison, stating that was on the low end of federal sentencing guidelines. Waddoups said departing from that guideline was appropriate “in unique cases like this.”
“Mrs. Ross is not likely to recommit this crime,” he said. He also noted that she was the primary caregiver for her husband and an adult son who have serious health problems.
“I feel that Mrs. Ross can contribute more to society as a caregiver” than as an example to other potential felons, he said.
U.S. Attorney Brett Tolman said the sentence was “troubling and very disappointing.”
“People who abuse a position of trust, profit substantially and do so in a totally illegal manner should face more than probation,” Tolman wrote in a statement. “If you consider the sentence of probation in this case, apparently crime does pay.”
