Diocese of NY Church Lady Accused of Embezzling Committed a 'Sin': Judge

By Laura Italiano
New York Post
July 19, 2012

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/diocese_judge_ny_chuch_lady_accused_ZuVdc2kyy12FngrQngkhgP#ixzz217LGrW9P

A Manhattan judge today chided prosecutors for offering only 4 1/2 years prison to an allegedly embezzling former clerk for the Diocese of New York, calling the $1 million embezzlement "not only a crime, but a sin."

"How come you went down?" Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Lewis Bart Stone asked after prosecutors announced their latest rock-bottom offer -- 4 1/2 to 9 years prison -- for accused accounts payable clerk Anita Collins.

Back in April, prosecutors had said they'd go no lower than six years prison for Collins, 69, who is charged with taking the money over the course of seven years, filling her Schuylerville, Bronx, apartment with Bloomingdales furniture, Belleek China and pricey Madam Alexander dolls.

"This is a woman who has stolen more than a million dollars from a not-for-profit religious organization," the judge told prosecutors.

"Which could be described not only as a crime but a sin. I'm not sure that your offer is fair to the organization, which has its own financial difficulties," he added.

When defense lawyer Howard Simmons made a pitch for leniency, arguing that Collins was the only caretaker for a daughter now dying from cancer in a Manhattan hospital, the judge was unmoved.

"So she created her own charitable fund out of somebody else's money," the judge said.

Collins, a hunched and frail figure who stared down at the defense table throughout today's brief hearing, has until Aug. 16 to decide if she'll go to trial, or take the 4 1/2 years.

"If you are not going to trial, I will accept the 4 1/2 to 9," the judge finally agreed.

The deal would require that Collins forfeit her assets and waive her right to appeal. Some 30 church folks -- though not Cardinal Dolan -- have written letters asking for mercy.

"She's doing poorly," the defense lawyer told reporters after court. "Her health is deteriorating. She's not eating, and not doing well in confinement. She's lost quite a lot of weight."

He added, "Four-and-a-half could very well be a death sentence for her. She's mentally and physically destroyed."

Colins had been convicted of grand larceny in 1999 for stealing from a previous employer, but the Archdiocese never did background checks when hiring her, authorities have said.