LOCK HAVEN - The jury deliberated only about 30 minutes before declaring Kimberly Coleman guilty of trying to cover up crimes allegedly committed by her son, former Clinton County Commissioner Adam C. Coleman.
She was found guilty on all three charges - one count of criminal conspiracy, a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine; and one count each of unsworn falsification to authorities and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, both second-degree misdemeanors that are each punishable by up to two years in prison and $5,000 in fines.
The trial began at about 8 a.m. Tuesday and the jury returned its verdict just before 4 p.m. Judge J. Michael Williamson presided and scheduled sentencing for 1:30 p.m. May 21. She remains free on bail.
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KIM COLEMAN
Adam Coleman faces trial in July for an alleged scheme to defraud money from the Lock Haven Area YMCA with the cooperation of the Y's former director, Jeremiah Clark. The star witness for the day was Clark, who admitted his guilt on the stand and said he pulled the funds from the YMCA accounts to help Adam Coleman pay off a golfing debt. Clark circled around whether or not Adam Coleman knew the money was stolen, repeatedly saying he didn't know when asked that question.
Under cross examination by defense attorney Jacob Gurwitz - who described Clark as a "liar" and con artist- Clark said he and Adam Coleman were friends, and Clark, in his capacity as general manager of the country club, knew of Coleman's golfing debt, a 2008 balance amounting to $1,415, overdue by a year.
According to emails, in February of 2009, Clark sent a request for a check to be cut from the grants and foundations account to Coleman's Landscaping Services for $1,465.
Clark said the amount was "a number in the air ... I knew it would cover what was needed."
The check was made payable to Adam C. Coleman.
The work alleged to be done included "clearing of debris in the rear of the YMCA, removal of three trees and repairing of grounds, including planting seed and soil."
Those words were contained in the second invoice after the first one, which mentioned only "services provided," was rejected by Clark as too vague.
"I made mistakes numerous times," Clark said, outlining his forging of names, and creation of false invoices.
As for the invoices, the emails suggest they were created by Kim Coleman and sent to Clark, with a copy to Adam Coleman.
The Colemans, along with Clark, were charged following an investigation by the Attorney General's office that focused on the alleged misappropriation of more than $133,000 from the YMCA.
Kim Coleman took the stand in her own defense, but talked only about a very narrow issue - whether or not an allegedly damaging statement she made to a special agent for the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office was coerced or influenced by the agent.
She said she had felt "intimidated" by a grand jury subpoena, and the representative never advised her of her right to an attorney before accepting documents or taking her statement.
