Inglewood : Coleman Trial Delayed
The felony embezzlement trial of Inglewood school trustee Caroline Coleman, which had been scheduled to start Dec. 30, will not open until early January because of a case backlog, Deputy Dist. Atty. Tom Gray said.
Coleman, 47, is accused of submitting phony airline and hotel receipts to account for more than $1,200 she received to attend a November, 1983, educational conference in New Orleans. Conference organizers have no record of Coleman attending or even registering for the conference.
The district attorney’s office filed charges against Coleman in June, claiming that it had found discrepancies and errors in her receipts. The receipts said Coleman checked into the New Orleans Hilton one day earlier than her Delta Air Lines flight left Los Angeles, prosecutors said.
Though unavailable for comment this week, Coleman has maintained her innocence throughout the investigation.
If found guilty on the felony charge, she would be barred from holding public office. Coleman, a county probation officer, has been suspended from work without pay pending a resolution of the case.
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