According to a story in the Salisbury (Maryland) Daily Times, the Maryland State Education Association conspired to hide the embezzlement of nearly a half-million dollars from its members because “because of (the) potential impact on membership and loss of members” according to a insurance document the union filed. MSEA is an affiliate of the National Education Association.

The embezzlement was all done by one person, Denise Owens, a special education teacher at Stephen Decatur Middle School. She was also the treasurer the treasurer of the Worcester County Teachers Association. Owens was also a gambling addict who couldn’t stop playing the slots in nearby Delaware. Starting in 2006, she began lifting funds from the treasury to cover her losses.