Former principal from Coral Springs avoids prison in $238K embezzlement case
A Coral Springs woman and former principal found guilty of stealing over $238,000 from her employer will not face prison time, a Broward County judge decided.
Instead, Lori Ann St. Thomas must serve 10 years of probation and pay $121,548 in restitution.
According to court documents, her defense attorneys argued that her sentence should be below the usual standard because the defendant “requires specialized treatment for a mental disorder” and “the need for payment of restitution to the victim outweighs the need for a prison sentence.”
St. Thomas, 62, led St. Coleman Catholic School in Pompano Beach for 20 years before leaving at the end of the 2023-24 academic year to become the principal of Parkland’s Mary Help of Christians School, alleging retaliation for reporting sexual misconduct.
According to court records, the last nine years of her tenure at St. Coleman included diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars via “unauthorized” direct deposits outside of her regular paycheck.
A school representative reported the activity to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office in November 2024, and St. Thomas was found guilty of organized scheme to defraud in March.
Broward prosecutors had asked the judge to sentence Thomas to five years in state prison and followed by 20 years of probation, as well as the restitution payment.
Her defense attorney, Tonja Haddad Coleman, had argued that the Archdiocese of Miami was withholding evidence that would have helped her client’s case, and that a priest had authorized the payments in accordance with school policy.
Haddad Coleman highlighted the fact that a bookkeeper listed as a key defense witness was fired after giving a statement during a hearing, and the statement was never handed over, as well as records she said would show that St. Thomas had received funds through authorized stipends, not theft.
Whether the case will be appealed remains unclear.
Olivia Lloyd contributed reporting.
