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TRENTON - Attorney General
Anne Milgram announced that the principal
at the H.B. Wilson Elementary School in
Camden pleaded guilty today to official
misconduct for using his position as principal
to steal more than $14,000 from students
and teachers.
Michael Hailey, 67, of Delran,
pleaded guilty before Superior Court Judge
Stephen M. Holden in Camden County to second-degree
official misconduct and third-degree attempted
theft by deception. The charges were contained
in a March 19, 2007 state grand jury indictment.
Under the plea agreement,
the state will recommend a sentence of three
to five years in state prison. Deputy Attorneys
General Susan Kase and Vincent J. Militello
of the Division of Criminal Justice - Corruption
Bureau are prosecuting the case and took
the guilty plea.
At today’s plea hearing,
Hailey admitted that he used his position
as school principal to deceive parents and
teachers into paying more than $14,000 for
field trips that were paid for by the school
district. Hailey admitted that he knew the
trips had previously been approved by the
Camden Board of Education. Teachers conducted
fundraisers with their students and sometimes
paid for students whose parents could not
afford the amounts they were told were required
for the bus and other trip costs. The school
board paid the full cost of the trips by
issuing checks to the vendors involved.
School board policy prohibits charging elementary
or middle school
Hailey further admitted
that he attempted to steal more than $25,000
by billing the Camden Board of Education
for extra wages for 14 School Leadership
Council members in connection with eight
meetings that never took place. Hailey admitted
that he, along with co-defendants Patricia
Johnson, 59, of Atco, a former administrator
at Wilson Elementary School; Juanita Worthy,
60, of Evesham, the former U.S. Wiggins
Elementary school principal; and her daughter,
Keah Worthy, 32, of Evesham, a former teacher
at Wilson Elementary, pressured teachers
from the Wilson and Wiggins schools to sign
blank attendance sheets for meetings of
each school’s School Leadership Council,
an advisory group of school stakeholders
that includes teachers, administrative staff
and community representatives.
The school board never paid
for the School Leadership Council meetings
because it discovered they had not been
held.
Hailey, Johnson and Juanita
Worthy were suspended with pay by the school
board in May 2006 after the board’s
investigation into the School Leadership
Council vouchers. They retired in July 2006
while facing disciplinary action by the
district.
Johnson pleaded guilty on
Jan. 28 to second-degree conspiracy and
third-degree attempted theft by deception.
On Oct. 23, Keah Worthy pleaded guilty to
attempted theft by deception. Juanita Worthy’s
case is still pending. Hailey, Johnson and
Keah Worthy are scheduled to be sentenced
by Judge Holden on Feb. 6.
Attorney General Milgram
thanked Superintendent Rick Fuentes and
the State Police Official Corruption Unit
for leading the investigation. She credited
Sgt. Gary D. Sandes, who led the investigation,
Detective Gregory Shawaryn and Lt. Gerard
A. McHugh of the State Police, and State
Investigator Anthony Luyber of the Division
of Criminal Justice - Corruption Bureau.
Attorney
General Milgram noted that the Division
of Criminal Justice has established a statewide
Corruption Tipline: 1-866-TIPS-4CJ.
Additionally, the public can log on to the
Division’s Web page at www.njdcj.org
to report suspected wrongdoing. All information
received through the Division of Criminal
Justice Corruption Tipline or Web page will
remain confidential.
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