Victim blasts state, court over restitution order

SANDPOINT — A Bonner County woman with a history of shady financial dealings was sentenced to four months in jail after being convicted of grand theft for ripping off her former employer.

Danielle Diane Bolden was also given a suspended prison term of two to four years and ordered to pay $4,500 in restitution, according to records from her June 16 sentencing before District Judge Steve Verby.

Bolden pleaded guilty to a felony theft charge as part of a plea agreement with the state. In exchange for the plea, the prosecution agreed not to pursue a charge of obtaining prescription medication through misrepresentation.

Bolden, 36, apologized for her conduct when she was sentenced, court records show.

Bolden was accused of stealing thousands of dollars while she was working as a cashier at the Sagle Conoco on U.S. Highway 95. The thefts occurred between October 2007 and January, according to charging papers.

The thievery came to light when coworkers noticed the cash register kept coming up short and there were an excessive number of voided transactions, court records said. Store operators estimated as much as $12,000 was stolen by Bolden.

“I committed the crime in a desperate attempt to get help,” Bolden said in her written guilty plea. Chief Deputy Public Defender Janet Whitney told the court at Bolden’s sentencing that her client became addicted to prescription drugs and used the money to support her habit and her four children, records indicate.

Under the terms of the restitution order, the gas station’s operators will receive $1,000 to cover its insurance deductible. The rest of the restitution goes to the insurer.

Patrick Ferrick, Pacific Northwest Fuel’s secretary and treasurer, blasted the sheriff’s office, the prosecution and the court for the way Bolden’s case was handled. He claims deputies tried to discourage him from seeking charges against Bolden, and that the state and court should not have agreed to such a limited amount of restitution.

In a letter to the editor, Ferrick said crime does pay in Bonner County.

“By my calculations, she’ll be getting $1,875 for every month she spends in city jail,” wrote Ferrick, who did not respond to a request for further comment.

Although the restitution was capped because of Bolden’s ability to repay what she stole while on probation, the station’s operators are free to pursue a civil judgment against the woman.

Bolden, court records show, had been convicted of check fraud three times before she was arrested on the theft charge.