San Diego

A live-in caretaker convicted of stealing from her elderly patients has been sentenced to two years in state prison.

Vivian Underwood, 39, was sentenced by Superior Court Judge William J. Howatt Jr., who also ordered her placed on probation for five years and to pay $15,000 in restitution.

Underwood pleaded guilty to grand theft for the unauthorized use of a patient’s credit card in a plea-bargain agreement in which another charge was dropped. She also pleaded no contest to grand theft in a case in which an $11,500 ring was stolen from an invalid woman at Mercy Hospital.

According to the victims’ family members, Underwood used the credit cards to pay for things such as a home entertainment system and a television satellite dish.

“In all my years as a prosecutor, I don’t think I’ve seen a case of theft just like this,” Deputy Dist. Atty. Mark Pettine.

The judge demanded that Underwood inform any future employers of her convictions, and ordered her not to pursue work that involved the care of an invalid.

Pettine said Underwood is wanted on eight outstanding warrants in Florida, where she has been convicted of grand larceny and passing bad checks, leading to a 2 1/2-year prison sentence.

“She’s been a thief all of her life. . . . I think she’s earned her (prison) time in the state of California,” Pettine said.