WACO, Texas (AP) — A former Central Texas judge already on probation for a records and mileage reimbursement scam faces up to 10 years in federal prison for stealing a dead man’s Social Security benefits, prosecutors said.
Jean Laster Boone, who resigned last October as a McLennan County justice of the peace, pleaded guilty Thursday to theft of government property. Boone remains free on bond pending sentencing later this year. She also faces a fine of up to $250,000.
The case began when Robert Martin Davis died on May 27, 2010. Boone, a longtime friend of Davis, was the reporting party on the death certificate, prosecutors said.
Boone, 62, had power of attorney and access to the man’s bank account while the Social Security Administration continued to deposit his benefits, totaling about $63,000 through last October. Boone acknowledged to investigators that she spent more than $16,000 from the account for “fixing stuff up around the house,” according to a news release from prosecutors. Boone repaid the embezzled money in March.
The ex-judge received three years of probation in December after pleading guilty to two felony counts of record tampering.
County employees said in mid-2013 that Boone told them to falsify mileage documents. She submitted false forms about using personal vehicles for county business to collect maximum reimbursement of $360 per month, prosecutors said.
Boone declined comment following Thursday’s plea hearing.
