Woman gets 5 years probation in embezzlement

CLOVIS - A woman arrested in March for embezzling over $12,000 from a local grocery store was sentenced Tuesday to five years supervised probation through a plea agreement.

Rosa Davis, 58, was initially charged with over 150 counts of embezzlement across a two-year period, each count ranging from petty misdemeanor (under $250) to a fourth-degree felony (between $500 and $2,500).

Those charges were narrowed to 31 counts when bound from magistrate to district court in May, and a trial on the case scheduled for last month was canceled in favor of Tuesday afternoon's plea conference.

By the terms of the agreement, Davis pleaded guilty to 10 of the petty misdemeanor counts and was sentenced to just under five years supervised probation. The remaining charges are dismissed and she is ordered to pay restitution in full to Albertsons supermarket, among other requirements.

Restitution amount and a repayment schedule will be determined at a hearing to be scheduled in the next 30 to 45 days, as requested and agreed upon by defense attorney Sandra Gallagher and Claire Adams from the 9th Judicial District Attorney Office.

Investigators said Davis used a variety of techniques at the register, including "ongoing methods of merchandise refund transactions, gift card refund transactions and money order transactions," according to court records.

Judge Matthew Chandler presided over the hearing and advised Davis that if convicted in trial she would have faced a sentence ranging from probation to 80 years in prison and fines of up to $94,000.

Davis spoke little during the hearing, but her voice waivered as she told Chandler of her difficulty finding a job the past year. He reminded her the importance to keep at that search as she would have restitution payments to make soon enough.

Gallagher told the judge that Davis was cooperative with the investigation from the start and had "a very ill parent" to help at the time.

"This is something that's never happened before and I don't have any indication that this is something that will ever happen again," she said.