A former Jonesville clerk-treasurer was ordered to serve 10 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections after her probation for stealing town funds was revoked in Bartholomew Circuit Court.
Melissa L. Schultheis, 45, 206 Market St., Jonesville, was sentenced Friday morning in Bartholomew Circuit Court by Judge Kelly Benjamin.
The order was for committing probation violations that include forging a physician’s letter that provided an excuse for not performing community service or failure to make mandatory restitution payments.
The letter was earlier submitted as court evidence, and Schultheis swore under oath the letter was genuine.
When put together, those three acts constitute forgery, obstruction of justice and perjury, Bartholomew County Prosecutor Bill Nash said.
“The defendant committed new felonies to avoid being imprisoned for old ones,” Nash said.
After serving her prison term, Schultheis will likely spend an additional five years in a community corrections program, Nash said. When compared to traditional probation, community corrections programs can provide tighter controls on a defendant’s earnings, so some money can go towards restitution, he said.
The case goes back to January 2001, when Schultheis began using her authority as clerk-treasurer to take money from the residents of Jonesville, Nash said. The thefts continued unnoticed until a state audit released in June 2007, showed that more than $92,000 was missing, the prosecutor said.
“During all that time, Melissa Schultheis was making stealing from her neighbors and friends a lifestyle,” Nash told the court.
After claiming most of the money went toward her children’s hospital bills, Schultheis pleaded guilty to 10 counts of felony theft in November 2008. A few months later, former Circuit Court and now-Senior Judge Stephen Heimann handed down a 15-year prison sentence.
However, Heimann suspended the sentence to allow the defendant to make restitution payments of $300 a month. At that time, a majority of the Jonesville town council members agreed with Heimann’s decision because it would allow Schultheis to repay the stolen money.
But it didn’t turn out the way they expected. Court records show Schultheis still owes $78,279 in restitution, as well as $6,944 in court costs and fees.
When the population of the town (177) is taken into consideration, Schultheis stole an amount equal to $500 for every Jonesville resident, Nash said.
In regard to Friday’s sentencing, long-time Jonesville town council member Michelle Rodriquez said she would have preferred an arrangement where Schultheis could spend weekends in jail — and still work weekdays to make restitution.
“But we’re satisfied,” Rodriquez said as she stood with other town residents. “At this point, we’ll take whatever we can get.”
At separate times during Friday’s hearing, Benjamin and Nash quoted this assessment of Schultheis that Heimann delivered in open court in February 2017: “The court finds (Schultheis) has zero credibility … that she lies and is dishonest and has been throughout the course of these proceedings.”
So after Schultheis told the judge she refused to testify on her own behalf Friday, the defendant was never allowed to say more than a few syllables before Benjamin interrupted and ordered the defendant to remain silent.
“This is not a case about money,” Benjamin told Schultheis. “It’s a case about trust. You have busted our trust.”
That includes the trust of the neighbors she stole from — and those who believed she would make a sincere effort at paying back the money, Benjamin said. Schultheis also lost the trust of the court that allowed her to remain free for the sake of making restitution, the judge said.
Finally, the judge said the defendant also lost the trust of her own family after repeatedly using her children as excuses to stay out of jail.
Evidence of the latter was presented Friday when Nash played a recording of a telephone conversation Schultheis had from jail on Aug. 16 — four days after insisting she needed to care for a very ill 6-year-old child.
After being informed during that call that a physician said the boy was healthy enough to attend full-day classes and field trips, a sad-sounding Schultheis could be heard using a vulgar word to explain her situation. The expletive indicated Schultheis realized she could no longer use the child as an potential excuse for staying out of jail.
“Do you know what I didn’t hear from you on that phone call?” Benjamin asked Schultheis. “You did not ask once how your own child was really doing. How he’s feeling. You only expressed concerned about yourself.”
This was the fourth time that a petition has been filed for revoke Schultheis’ probation. With the exception of a 30-day jail term ordered by Heimann in 2017, she has remained free for the past 10 years in order to make restitution payments.
