Good Friday is a
holiday for many govt workers. Except, the court system in
West Virginia, sees it as just another work day. With all of
the main floor of the Courthouse dark and devoid of activity,
Judge Ric Facemire spent April 2nd , Good Friday 2021, on the
bench One of his duties was to handle the sentencing Christian
Elliot for her sticky fingeritus of Lizemore Fire Dept
funds and then covering up her thievery.
Ms Elliot is the girl next door, the one that's active in the community, takes kids to community events and handles other important stuff like Christmas parades ... in the past. Probably make a great neighbor too!
That was before Feb 1st when she plead guilty to counts of stealing funds and covering up the heist.
On April 2nd, Elliot entered the court room dressed in black with her locks well combed. To accent her outfit, she sported a salmon colored face mask and matching color scarf. In the peanut gallery were a dozen or so of her family members. We didn't notice any kids there that morning.
Attorney Allen Pritt handled the heavy lifting. With all parties in place, Mr Pritt told Judge Facemire, she has a clean background; she has kids; I am asking for probation or alternative sentencing; she has made no excuses; and, she is accountable for what she did.
It was Elliot's turn to put on her best performance and convince the Judge, all that's behind her now, she's a new woman!!
From Christian Elliot: I have three children... I am a stay at home Mom ... one is a special needs child .... I have apologized to the Fire Dept and am doing it again today ... I have not been a part of the FD for two years .... I apologize for that teny tiny Feb 1st incident online... I am sorry..
Feb 1st incident? Yelp, while admitting guilt, Elliot took pics (maybe a video too) of the online court action and then spread it around to all her friends. That really peed off Facemire or at the very least, made fun of serious court actions. Note: Taking pics during court action without prior court approval is a real no no.
Judge Ric Facemire has seen about every kind of case, action, coming and going after decades on the bench. It's hard to pull the wool over such seasoned eyes.
Looking her directly in the eye, Facemire went with: You are not a bad person but you did a bad thing... The public wants me to throw the book at you .... This is the hardest thing (sentencing) that I do... My children would do bad things, I love them but not what they did.
You show lack of remorse... You violated the trust of the Lizemores Fire Dept. , community, and family .. There are multiple offenses charged ... It troubles me that you took $$$ multiple times from the Fire Dept ... The Fire Dept cares for the community and they have to raise funds to operate ...
You took money for personal needs and bills .... They trusted you ...These are serious offenses .. Your family has a decent income ($10K per month) but YOU took from the Fire Dept ... You went to the Quincy WalMart with forged checks.... They trusted you... [did this] not once but continued taking the money.
You cost the Fire Dept to lose state funding ($12,770.) ... you were not forthright with the probation officers... this is a breach of trust.... There is a risk that you would do this again!
For Count one forgery, Judge Facemire sentenced Christian Elliot to 1 to 10 years in the penitentiary plus a $500 fine. For Count three, Elliot was sentenced to 1 to 10 years as well. On this count, Elliot will receive 6 years of probation.
She will serve Count One. Both sentences will run consecutively.
When prison time is completed then: you cannot have a job handling any $$$; you can have no contact with the Lizemores Fire Dept; you have to do community service; you have to write an apology letter and put it in the local paper.
Facemire added the normal stuff like no beer or alcohol, no beer gardens, no weapons, and the rest
During the big long spiel, Elliot showed no emotions, no tears, no dropping her head low. She stood and listened. That wasn't the case for family members in the peanut gallery. There, some sobbed openly while others looked up at the ceiling and yet others held their head in their hands.
The Robe told the Sheriff to take her into custody. She turned and handed her purse to a family member as she was escorted out the big doors.
Later she was cuffed and shackled in bright shiny restraints. It was a nice accessory for her outfit.
From Oscar Wilde: I hope you have not been leading a double life, pretending to be wicked, and being really good all the time. That would be hypocrisy.
AW
Updated Sept 3 2021
Ms Elliot is the girl next door, the one that's active in the community, takes kids to community events and handles other important stuff like Christmas parades ... in the past. Probably make a great neighbor too!
That was before Feb 1st when she plead guilty to counts of stealing funds and covering up the heist.
On April 2nd, Elliot entered the court room dressed in black with her locks well combed. To accent her outfit, she sported a salmon colored face mask and matching color scarf. In the peanut gallery were a dozen or so of her family members. We didn't notice any kids there that morning.
Attorney Allen Pritt handled the heavy lifting. With all parties in place, Mr Pritt told Judge Facemire, she has a clean background; she has kids; I am asking for probation or alternative sentencing; she has made no excuses; and, she is accountable for what she did.
It was Elliot's turn to put on her best performance and convince the Judge, all that's behind her now, she's a new woman!!
From Christian Elliot: I have three children... I am a stay at home Mom ... one is a special needs child .... I have apologized to the Fire Dept and am doing it again today ... I have not been a part of the FD for two years .... I apologize for that teny tiny Feb 1st incident online... I am sorry..
Feb 1st incident? Yelp, while admitting guilt, Elliot took pics (maybe a video too) of the online court action and then spread it around to all her friends. That really peed off Facemire or at the very least, made fun of serious court actions. Note: Taking pics during court action without prior court approval is a real no no.
Judge Ric Facemire has seen about every kind of case, action, coming and going after decades on the bench. It's hard to pull the wool over such seasoned eyes.
Looking her directly in the eye, Facemire went with: You are not a bad person but you did a bad thing... The public wants me to throw the book at you .... This is the hardest thing (sentencing) that I do... My children would do bad things, I love them but not what they did.
You show lack of remorse... You violated the trust of the Lizemores Fire Dept. , community, and family .. There are multiple offenses charged ... It troubles me that you took $$$ multiple times from the Fire Dept ... The Fire Dept cares for the community and they have to raise funds to operate ...
You took money for personal needs and bills .... They trusted you ...These are serious offenses .. Your family has a decent income ($10K per month) but YOU took from the Fire Dept ... You went to the Quincy WalMart with forged checks.... They trusted you... [did this] not once but continued taking the money.
You cost the Fire Dept to lose state funding ($12,770.) ... you were not forthright with the probation officers... this is a breach of trust.... There is a risk that you would do this again!
For Count one forgery, Judge Facemire sentenced Christian Elliot to 1 to 10 years in the penitentiary plus a $500 fine. For Count three, Elliot was sentenced to 1 to 10 years as well. On this count, Elliot will receive 6 years of probation.
She will serve Count One. Both sentences will run consecutively.
When prison time is completed then: you cannot have a job handling any $$$; you can have no contact with the Lizemores Fire Dept; you have to do community service; you have to write an apology letter and put it in the local paper.
Facemire added the normal stuff like no beer or alcohol, no beer gardens, no weapons, and the rest
During the big long spiel, Elliot showed no emotions, no tears, no dropping her head low. She stood and listened. That wasn't the case for family members in the peanut gallery. There, some sobbed openly while others looked up at the ceiling and yet others held their head in their hands.
The Robe told the Sheriff to take her into custody. She turned and handed her purse to a family member as she was escorted out the big doors.
Later she was cuffed and shackled in bright shiny restraints. It was a nice accessory for her outfit.
From Oscar Wilde: I hope you have not been leading a double life, pretending to be wicked, and being really good all the time. That would be hypocrisy.
AW
Updated Sept 3 2021
We checked in with the Dept of Prisons
today. From that web portal:
Intake Date: 6/9/2021 10:00:00 AM
Next Parole Hearing: 4/2/2022
Projected Release Date: 4/2/2026
AW
Intake Date: 6/9/2021 10:00:00 AM
Next Parole Hearing: 4/2/2022
Projected Release Date: 4/2/2026
AW