DiNapoli: St. Lawrence County town-court clerk accused of “pocketing” thousands in fines

NORFOLK, N.Y. — A former town-court clerk in St. Lawrence County is under arrest after she “misappropriated” nearly $10,000 in court fees that defendants paid.

Lisa Dillon is the former clerk for the Town of Norfolk justice court.

The St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office had conducted the investigation, the office of New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said in a news release.

Dillon, 36, was charged with felony counts of third degree grand larceny, third degree corrupting the government, and first degree tampering with public records. She is also charged with a felony count of offering a false instrument for filing and public corruption. 

“Ms. Dillon was entrusted with collecting the fines and surcharges imposed on defendants by the court for a variety of cases; instead she abused that trust by pocketing thousands of those dollars and falsifying records in a vain attempt to conceal her crimes,” DiNapoli said. “The St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office was instrumental in helping my staff bring this individual to justice. We will continue to work with law enforcement across the state to protect taxpayers’ money.”

As a court clerk, Dillon was responsible for collecting court fines and surcharges and recording the receipts in the court’s official paper and electronic-record systems. 

She also prepared deposits for the justices, reported applicable court transactions to the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, and prepared monthly justice-court fund reports, which are submitted to the Comptroller’s office. 

The investigation revealed that money was collected but never deposited and that court records had been “altered to hide the missing funds,” DiNapoli’s office said.

Dillon, an employee at the justice court since August 2013, admitted some of her wrongdoing and resigned earlier this year on Jan. 11, after two judges confronted her about the fund shortfalls.

The St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office referred the matter to DiNapoli’s division of investigations after the justices reported their findings. 

DiNapoli’s office discovered “several thousands of additional misappropriated dollars” as well as Dillon’s falsification of various court records, according to the release.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com