Embezzling Bookkeeper Begs Judge For Leniency
Letters Submitted to the Court Blame Pain-Pill Addiction
Tammy Jo Saucier, accused of stealing from a local elementary school, has submitted letters to the court calling for leniency and explaining the suffering she has endured is punishment enough for her alleged crimes. Her suffering includes dealing with the anger of her family and friends and the loss of her finger and spleen in the aftermath of her arrest.
Tammy Jo Saucier is accused of stealing from the students, parents and staff of Doctors Inlet Elementary. Back in February of this year, Saucier attempted to run from the police after her crimes were discovered. When cornered in a local cemetery, she fired shots at sheriff’s deputies and demanded a cigarette.
Saciuer submitted two letters to the court in November. While addressed to the judge presiding over her cases, the letters were marked as “ex-parte communication” and, according to court records, not reviewed by the judge.
Saucier’s first letter on the court record, which is actually the second one written, gives a glimpse into what Saucier says caused her to steal, namely a hysterectomy that led to a pain-pill addiction. She goes on to say that in the aftermath of running from law enforcement, she was shot three times, which resulted in the loss of her pinky finger and spleen. Saucier argued that her injuries, and her age should be considered enough suffering for her crimes.
Her letters also apparently reveal there has been a reduction in the charges she faced from shooting at Clay County Sheriff’s deputies. According to Sauicer the attempted murder charges have been reduced to “assault on a law enforcement officer.”
Saucier wrote that she felt pressure to make an offer to the prosecutors in light of the reduced charges. She said that the state rejected two offers, one for 13 months in jail with seven years probation and another for three years in prison and seven years probation.
The second letter added to the court record was actually the first written by Saucier. This letter focuses more on how much she loves her husband and family, her mental state during the crimes, and how her alleged drug addiction controlled her life and consumed her. According to Saucier, her plan when running from law enforcement was suicide, not endanger anyone else. She concluded by saying that she needs is mental health and substance addiction counseling.
Her letters, however, barely express any remorse for the way her alleged crimes hurt students and staff of the school.
The stolen money has yet to be repaid to parents and students, and school staff have received almost no communication from the Clay County Schools District leadership. The school staff has been strongly advised not to speak about the incident.
As of the time this article was published, parents of students at the school had not received any official communication about the thefts.
It is unclear at this time what actions the school district has taken to prevent future embezzlement at local schools, especially given that the district’s chief financial officer claimed no theft was happening at any schools. Clay News & Views will update this story as it develops.
How is that someone in a position of even being able to embezzle funds is not subject to a in depth background check as well as routine and random mental evaluation, credit evaluation and drug testing????