POUGHKEEPSIE – Pleasant Valley Town Clerk Margaret Hart pled guilty in Dutchess County Court on Wednesday to felony grand larceny for stealing over $27,000 in town funds collected from fees and fines.
District Attorney William Grady said Hart had been previously advised that if she pled guilty, resigned from her post and made full restitution, her sentence would be five years of probation.
Westchester County Court Judge George Fufidio, sitting as an acting Dutchess County Court judge, told her that if the conditions were fulfilled, he would sentence her to a three-year conditional discharge with the condition being that she perform 300 hours of community service at the Pleasant Valley Food Pantry.
Grady said Hart had admitted that during a four-year period from 2012-2016, she stole the money collected for fees including refuse tickets, marriage licenses, hunting licenses and property taxes.
