CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Former Kanawha County Magistrate Julie Yeager will spend up to the next 10 years in prison.
Yeager was sentenced in front of Kanawha County Circuit Court Judge Duke Bloom on Friday after pleading guilty to two felonies of embezzlement and fraudulent schemes in March.
“This is a troubling case to the court,” Bloom said to Yeager. “Not only because of the stature that you formally held as a magistrate in Kanawha County and the public trust that you held, but that you stole from your peers.”
As treasurer, Yeager stole more than $30,000 from the West Virginia Magistrate Association for personal use.
She faced 1 to 10 years on each of the two counts but Bloom suspended the imposition of the second count in place of four years of probation.
Yeager also was sentenced to 500 hours of community service.
“We are very appreciative that the court took into consideration the entire picture of Miss Yeager’s life,” defense attorney Jesse Forbes said.
“Certainly we were asking for an alternative sentence but this is a situation where the court essentially granted some form of that after she spends a period of time incarcerated.”
Bloom said he reviewed many similar cases in the past leading up to the sentencing. The judge said that in almost every one of those instances, because of the prolonged period of time that the crime went on, he felt that incarceration was appropriate.
Raleigh County Prosecutor Kristen Keller, who was appointed as special prosecutor in the case, cited the period of time that Yeager committed the crimes on Friday, which was between 2010 and July 2017.
Yeager apologized for her actions on Friday.
“I hurt my family but also hurt the public that I work for that trusted for 13 years,” she said fighting tears. “I have embarrassed them. I caused shame.”
“I can’t go back. I can’t fix it but I can tell you Judge (Bloom) that I am sorry to the court, to my magistrates, to my fellow magistrates, and my family.”
In the plea deal struck in March, Yeager lost eligibility to her retirement benefits and will never be able to seek or hold public office again.
Yeager’s family have previously made full restitution for the total amount taken.
She will report to the South Central Regional Jail on Monday morning.