Desert Messenger

February 18, 2015 www.DesertMessenger.com 31 The students of Salome High School have been extremely busy. On Feb- ruary 6, culinary and photography students headed to Arizona Western College for the CTE Competition. All of the competitors Salome sent to the completion placed. Rosa Frias re- ceived a fi rst place gold medal, Kirsha- na Guy received a second place silver medal and Kaelynn Whatley received a third place bronze medal. Students will be taking a day off on February 16 for President's Day. Baseball practice started on February 9 and Softball and Track will start on February 11. Softball's fi rst game will be February 25, baseball's fi rst game will be on February 27. Track's fi rst meet will be on March 4. FBLA State Conference is coming up in the spring, and they will be rais- ing money to attend the three-day affair in Tucson. They will be at the Annual Chili Cook-Off selling tick- ets for a chance to win an amazing loaded Easter Basket. National Honor Society has sent out applications to prospective members with a 3.0 GPA or higher. Science Club will be head- ing to Castles and Coasters for Physics Day on February 20. Student Council will be selling cinnamon rolls at the Annual Chili Cook-Off. The Annual Salome High updates Chili Cook-Off is on February 15. Stu- dent Council will be having a Mexican dinner on February 26. Mr. Anog, the math teacher at Sa- lome High School, has entered certain students into Moody's Mega Math Challenge. There are two teams that Mr. Anog will be coaching. In the fi rst team, there are three seniors, Kirshana Guy, Porsche Gresham and Ericka Martinez. The second team has fi ve juniors, KaLynne Strobel, Esmeralda Cruz, Joel Freedman, Jacquelin Har- old, and Stephanie Claytor. These stu- dents will be solving an "open ended, realistic, math modeling problem" in just fourteen hours. The students will be participating in this on February 28 or March 1. The Student Council recently at- tended the 2015 AASC State Conven- tion from February 5 through the 7 at Apache Junction High School. This year's theme was 'Legends Never Die'. While there, they voted on the new state offi cers, attended various leader- ship and spirit building activates. They also participated in a service project that helped the Ronald McDonald House. ' The Student Council members did their best to suit the theme. For example, on one day they all dressed up as famous scientists. They brought valuable information back to campus to help the student body to explore new school wide activities. Quartzsite- Be sure to check out the Rock Art by local artists throughout town in local businesses listed below and Town of Quartsite and the Public Library. This year, the Rock Art is smaller, so RVers can enjoy, no larger than 2', sitting on wooden easels. Student Artist: Abbagail Pearson Sponsored by: Silly Al's Pizza Student Artist: Abbagail Pearson Sponsored by: Lucy Peters Artist: Allan Gray Sponsored by: Town of Quartzsite Artist: Allan Gray Sponsored by: Mountain Quail Cafe Student Artist: Angel Baeza Sponsored by: Carrollynn Henshaw Student Artists: Angel Baeza & Rhiyanna Timberlake Sponsored by: Desert Messenger Student Artist: Ashtyn Timberlake Sponsor: Horizon Community Bank Artist: Bud Woodyard Sponsored by: Desert Gardens Show- grounds Rockin' in Quartzsite 2015 Artist: Carol Barney Sponsored by: Times Three Family Restaurant Artist: Danielle Miller Sponsored by: Quartzsite Business Chamber of Commerce Artist: Forrest Noland Sponsored by: Town of Quartzsite Artist: Jasmine Tinoco Sponsored by: Roadrunner Market Artist: Jessika Gardner Sponsored by: Desert Messenger Artist: Linda Klein Sponsored by: Horizon Community Bank Student Artist: Michaela Briggs Sponsored by: Monica Timberlake Artist: Nolan Barney Sponsored by: Times Three Family Restaurant Artist: Ruby Corya Sponsored by: Hardie's Beads & Jewelry Artist: Vangie Millard Sponsored by: Town of Quartzsite Court allows third-party claimant to take $4,050.00 from the $43,000.00 deposited with the court by defendant Jacque Nelson for restitution to the Bouse School District. Parker, AZ - On Friday, February 6, 2015 Superior Court Judge Robert C. Olson issued the fi nal orders in State v. Nelson. The Judge ordered the distribution of the remaining $38,950.00 and vacated the fi nal restitution hearing set for later this month. The court ordered that the school district be paid in full from the sum previously deposited by Ms. Jacque Nelson. The Court also ordered that the remainder of the $43,000.00 be paid to the insurance company as partial reim- bursement, with the remainder to be paid in monthly installments when Nelson is released from prison. Ms. Nelson was convicted of two crimes against the Bouse Elementary School District pursuant to a plea agreement negotiated by County Attorney Tony Rog- ers, who said Nelson wrote herself checks from the District's funds. For the crime of theft she will serve 1.5 years in the Arizona State Department of Corrections. For the crime of fraudulent schemes, a class 2 felony, she will serve 7 years of supervised "White Collar" probation to follow her release from prison. White Collar Probation is a strict program which requires that the probation department monitor all aspects of Ms. Nelson's fi nancial dealings. She is pro- hibited from incurring new debts without permission and from gambling. In addition she is required to submit to a review of all her accounting records. Ms. Nelson is also required to release information for all banking accounts and tax returns, not open new checking accounts, provide proof of all household income and pay a minimum of 10% of that household income toward restitution to the victims. She must also notify any employer of this conviction. Violation of this probation could result in an additional prison sentence of up to12.5 years. As part of the plea agreement Ms. Nelson deposited with the court clerk $43,000.00 for restitution to the victims, to be distributed between Bouse School District and their insurer, who had already covered the school's losses in part. County Attorney, Tony Rogers stated: "The plea agreement was structured to provide justice, community safety, and restitution, compensating the Bouse School District for all of its fi nancial losses, including nearly $20,000.00 for the cost of the forensic accounting and investigation into the theft." The Judgment, Sentencing, and Distribution Hearings were held on Friday Janu- ary 9, 2015. During those proceedings several individuals claiming to be victims of Ms. Nelson described their losses to the court. The Judge found one individu- al had a colorable claim on the funds Ms. Nelson had deposited with the court for restitution to the school. The court awarded Mr. Kirk Wilson $4,050.00. County Attorney Tony Rogers states "This was Ms. Nelson's fi rst criminal con- viction. While prison is not the norm for a fi rst time conviction, this case was unique due to the number and severity of the offenses and victims discovered during the investigation. The seven years of White Collar probation following her incarceration insures that the community will be protected from future fi nancial crimes by Ms. Nelson through close monitoring of her fi nancial dealings. And fi - nally, the prison sentence sends the right message, that perpetrators of fi nancial crime will be held accountable in La Paz County." Court issues final orders in theft/fraud case

• Cover