Bad hand, high stakes: Thief cost taxpayers more than stolen foster care money
Indisputable evidence of guilt didn't dissuade Lonna Carroll from taking $1.8M theft case to trial with public defender at her side
PIERRE – Tim Whalen was playing poker with a lousy hand. But he couldn’t fold.
The defense attorney for a former state government employee convicted earlier this month of stealing $1.8 million, Whalen and his client felt they had to play it to the end despite facing a flurry of face cards on the other side of the pot.
The case between the state of South Dakota and former Department of Social Services foster care worker Lonna Carroll went to trial despite overwhelming evidence of her guilt, including a recorded admission and a years-long paper trail revealing her crimes.
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