SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Former Mayor Tamara Wallace is scheduled to be arraigned on Oct. 13 at the U.S. District Court in Sacramento, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced. Wallace will then have a change of plea hearing on Oct. 29.
Wallace faces up to 20 years in prison for embezzling nearly $390,000 from a church in South Lake Tahoe. The U.S. Attorney’s Office charged her with one count of felony wire fraud on Sept. 15, following a federal investigation.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office said federal defendants plead not guilty at their arraignment, then can change their plea at the change of plea hearing later on. The purpose of the initial not guilty plea is to retain the defendant’s rights and gain access to the prosecution’s evidence to review the case, according to the Federal Community Defender Eastern District of Michigan…