She was ordered Monday to serve one year for each offense, although she will serve them concurrently, or at the same time. As part of the plea agreement, she was also ordered to pay about $54,000 in restitution, said Brian Driscoll, Clark County assistant prosecutor.
“That was obviously one of our goals, to get as much money back to the village and taxpayers as possible,” Driscoll said.
Along with the money Maurer admitted to taking from the village, Driscoll said she was also ordered to repay the cost of auditing to track down the village funds.
As prosecutors investigated, they discovered Maurer was in charge of payroll for the village and had been writing checks to herself. Authorities were never able to determine where Maurer might have spent the money or why it was stolen in the first place.
However, Driscoll also said it was Maurer’s first trouble with the law, and he noted that before serving the village as a clerk, she had also served the community as a teacher.
Her attorney, Michael Miller, did not return a call seeking comment Monday afternoon.
Village officials have said previously that additional checks and balances have been put in place to prevent a similar incident.
Maurer was elected as clerk-treasurer in November 2003 and again in 2007. Her term expired in March last year. However, court records show village officials discovered discrepancies in their financial records after Maurer left office.The current village-treasurer was also not able to balance the village’s books after taking office.
When state investigators analyzed the village computer, court documents show they believe Maurer altered village records to hide the theft, and then deposited the government funds into her own account.
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