The South Dakota Department of Social Services in Pierre. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)
By: South Dakota Searchlight staff
PIERRE, S.D. (South Dakota Searchlight) – A former state employee was sentenced to pay a fine, court costs and repay the state Monday after she pleaded guilty to using a grocery voucher that was intended for a foster family.
Amalia Escalante Barrientos, 28, of Brookings, pleaded guilty in Brookings County Circuit County to one misdemeanor count of obtaining money, property or assistance by fraud from social services or related programs. She was sentenced to pay a $400 fine, $96.50 in court costs and $449.98 in restitution. She’ll avoid serving 180 days in jail if she complies with the sentence.
The case was at least the fifth brought against a former state employee by Attorney General Marty Jackley since last summer, all for fraud-related allegations.
“This is another example of an individual using their power to abuse their position for personal gain, hurting those in need and the reputation of hard-working state employees,” Jackley said Monday in a news release. “The Attorney General’s Office will continue to investigate and prosecute cases to regain the public’s trust in state government.”
An investigation by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation found Barrientos had used the voucher, which is provided by the Department of Social Services to families the department works with, to purchase groceries for her own use. The incident occurred at a Brookings business on Oct. 11.
Updates on earlier cases
The recent rash of revelations about alleged criminal behavior by state employees dates to at least July, when Lonna Carroll, 68, of Algona, Iowa, was accused of embezzling $1.8 million from the state by creating and approving fraudulent financial support orders for children over the course of 13 years while she worked for the Department of Social Services. Her case is scheduled for an April trial.
In August, Jackley said a deceased former three-decade employee of the state Department of Revenue, Sandra O’Day, had allegedly created 13 fake vehicles to help her secure $400,000 in loans. No charges were filed, because O’Day died before her alleged behavior came to light.
In October, Jackley announced charges against two more former Department of Revenue employees, Lynne Hunsley, 64, and Danielle Degenstein, 51, both of Pierre.
Hunsley has since pleaded guilty to forgery and grand theft by deception for creating a fake vehicle title that she used as proof of a trade-in to help her avoid excise taxes. She was sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine and $1,200 in restitution to the state.
Degenstein is charged with a misdemeanor for allegedly concealing her knowledge of a crime committed by a person identified in court documents as “S.O.” — initials that match O’Day’s. Degenstein’s case is scheduled for a June trial.
In another pending case announced last month, Renee Strong, 55, of Springfield, faces felony charges for allegedly submitting falsified reports of food-serve health inspections she never conducted while working for the state Department of Public Safety.
Legislation introduced
Jackley announced a legislative package recently intended to help prevent and catch state employee crimes. The bills include proposed new requirements for supervisors to report suspected wrongdoing, protections for whistleblowers, a greater investigatory role for the state auditor, and requirements for state agencies to conduct annual risk reviews.
Lawmakers will consider the bills during the annual legislative session that began earlier this month at the Capitol in Pierre.
Then-Gov. Kristi Noem responded to the string of charges in November by adding an extra internal control officer position to the executive branch and by ordering state employees to undergo annual training aimed at preventing criminal activity.
Comments