Article Courtesy of The Herald Tribune

By Elizabeth Johnson

Published July 27, 2013

LONGBOAT KEY - A Longboat Key condominium manager who bought a motorcycle with the property's money and then drafted fake documents from a fictional insurance company to cover it up faces up to 30 years in state prison. 

Judy Paul could face up to 30 years in prison after a jury convicted her of stealing more than $100,000 from a Longboat Key condominium she managed from 2006 to 2009.

A jury last week found Judy Paul, 49, guilty of scheme to defraud more than $50,000 and stealing more than $100,000. The woman, who formerly managed Sand Cay condominiums, 4725 Gulf of Mexico Drive, cashed or deposited about 50 checks worth approximately $216,000 for personal gain from 2006 to 2009.

“And we all know that when you tell one little lie, you've got to keep covering it up with more lies, and that's exactly what this defendant did in this case,” said Erika Quartermaine, assistant state attorney, in her closing argument.

The Longboat Key Police Department began investigating Paul after an audit led to questions about an expense of nearly $13,000. 

The check was written to MRHD, which Paul claimed was an acronym for Mariner's Risk Homeowner's Division — an out-of-state insurance company that was needed for construction liability on the property, but the company does not exist. Instead, the acronym is for Manatee River Harley Davidson.

“The motorcycle is so important because this demonstrates the length at which this defendant will go to cover up what she did,” Quartermaine said.

Paul, who was paid a $62,000 annual salary, said she obtained permission to purchase the motorcycle from the president of the condominium's board. Paul claimed she was promised additional compensation when she agreed to take on more duties, but the money never came.

"Judy Paul is guilty of only one thing: Trusting these people,” argued her attorney Lee Blais, according to transcripts from the trial. “Does it make any sense that this lady came onto a job, agreed for a certain fixed amount, was given a whole lot of extra work to do and didn't want more compensation? 

“This lady isn't going to work for nothing, it makes no sense.”

Paul maintained her innocence throughout the trial, explaining that she would write the checks to reimburse her out-of-pocket expenses for the property.

“I would have to front money so many times,” Paul said when she took the stand. “So it was kind of a running tab.

“After what I've been through in the past three-and-a-half, nearly four years, I regret it more than probably anything in my life.” 

Paul's attorney said it would make no sense for her to steal money by blatantly writing herself checks.

“If you try to steal from somebody, do you fill out all these checks and put your name on them? Payable to Judy Paul, Judy Paul, Judy Paul,” Blais said. “It's not a very good way to hide disbursements.”

Quartermaine and her co-counsel, Lisa Chittaro, who make up the State Attorney's Office's new White Collar Division, contended that Paul took advantage of a community in disarray.

Sand Cay is a 60-unit property with individual owners, many of whom live out of state. The complex was also involved in a lawsuit with a construction company that claimed the complex did not meet payment deadlines.

“The amount of money that she saw in the Sand Cay accounts was a lot of money. And it was very tempting to her,” Quartermaine said. “If the money is sitting in a bowl does that entitle you to just go up and take it? No. We agreed that that was still stealing. The board did not have the correct checks and balances in this place because they trusted her and that was a mistake. A mistake that costs them hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

Paul is being held at the Manatee County jail, where she will remain until her sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.