According to Parent, Walsh began stealing the money because her personal finances were doing poorly and she confessed that she had "gotten in over her head."
NORTHAMPTON - After pleading guilty to larceny in Hampshire Superior Court Thursday, the former treasurer of the Amherst Pelham Education Association was ordered to make restitution for $116,000 she stole from the organization.
Elizabeth Walsh, 46, of Amherst, wrote checks to herself from 2006 to 2012 out of the association's account, according to prosecutor Jayme A. Parent. Walsh tried to hide her theft at first but admitted it to the association in March of this year after she was asked to produce the documents she worked with.
Walsh first told the members that she had stolen some $60,000, but an accounting firm that reviewed the books put the total at $116,000. Walsh has already paid back $66,000 of that amount.
In a statement to Judge Mary Lou Rup, Jean Faye, a paraprofessional at Crocker Farm Elementary School in Amherst and a member of the association, said Walsh's thefts caused her additional work and stress.
"Saddest of all was the fact that my trust was stolen," she said.
According to Parent, Walsh began stealing the money because her personal finances were doing poorly and she confessed that she had "gotten in over her head."
Defense lawyer Thomas Whitney said his client is "extremely embarrassed" by the incident and is willing to pay the required restitution of $9,000.
"But she can't undo the violation of trust," Whitney said.
Insurance paid the difference between the amount stolen and the $66,000 Walsh has already paid, Parent said. The $9,000 represents the deductible and out-of-pocket expenses for the Amherst Pelham Teachers Association.
