SANDPOINT - A woman convicted of embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from Coldwater Creek is appealing her sentence to the Idaho Supreme Court.

Susan Alene Hopkins, a former executive assistant for the clothing retailer, contends 1st District Judge Steve Verby abused his discretion and imposed an excessively harsh sentence, according to court documents.

Verby ordered Hopkins in August to serve up to five years in prison with a chance at parole after serving a year and a half.

Hopkins filed a notice of appeal on Sept. 24. A state appellate public defender has been appointed to represent her because she is indigent and owes $246,561 in restitution.

Hopkins, 55, was charged with grand theft for allegedly racking up thousands of dollars in personal purchases on a corporate expense account. She was further accused of embezzling from the Panhandle Alliance For Education, a nonprofit which Coldwater Creek has long supported.

Hopkins committed the thefts from 2006 to 2010, charging papers allege.

In an agreement with the state, Hopkins pleaded guilty to one count of grand theft and the second count was dismissed. The agreement initially proposed a suspended prison term with up to three months in jail.

Verby, however, declined to suspend the prison term.

"This is a serious crime," Verby said during the Aug. 20 sentencing hearing.

There have been 16 embezzlement cases prosecuted in Bonner County since 2005, according to court documents.

Suspended prison terms were imposed in 12 of those cases. Three other cases resulted in local jail sentences. Hopkins was the only defendant to receive a straight prison term.

The Idaho Department of Correction website lists Hopkins as an inmate, but does not specify where she is serving the sentence.