LIVINGSTON COUNTY – A Mount Morris man took a plea offer from the County District Attorney’s Office on Thursday, resulting in his charges being drastically reduced from felonies to misdemeanors.
Patrick Kelley, 50, pled guilty to Petit Larceny, which is the highest level of misdemeanor but still a serious break from felony Grand Larceny and Welfare Fraud, for which he was originally charged. Instead of going to jail, he will be on probation for three years, and will have to pay back the thousands of dollars he admitted to stealing from the Department of Social Services (DSS).
“Mr. Kelley does have the money,” said Kelley’s defense attorney Dan Magill. “He is prepared to pay the full restitution at this time.”
Kelley admitted to jipping the Welfare system for more than $6300 from October 2010 to July 2013. As part of his sentence, Kelley has to pay $6386.98 back to DSS.
PHOTO CAPTION: File Photo.