POMPANO BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — A former Catholic school principal in Pompano Beach was sentenced Wednesday to 10 years of probation after a Broward judge declined prosecutors’ request to send her to prison for stealing from St. Coleman Catholic School. Lori Ann St. Thomas, 62, also was ordered to pay about $121,000 in restitution.
The sentence came about six weeks after a Broward jury found St. Thomas guilty of organized scheme to defraud more than $50,000, a charge that carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison under Florida law. Prosecutors had asked for five years in state prison, but Judge Tim Bailey instead imposed probation, saying restitution outweighed the need for incarceration and that St. Thomas was not likely to reoffend.
Prosecutors said St. Thomas improperly arranged more than $238,000 in unauthorized extra pay while serving as principal of St. Coleman Catholic School, where she worked from 2004 until she was fired in 2024. Authorities said the payments were made between 2016 and 2024 and were discovered after school administrators reviewed payroll records…