Published: May 07, 2009 08:20 am      

Donna Logan pleads guilty

Corbin woman was charged with stealing thousands of dollars from Corbin Preschool

By Sean Bailey / Staff Writer

A Corbin woman pleaded guilty Wednesday morning to theft and forgery charges for taking money from an account once used to fund an indoor playground at Corbin Preschool.

Donna Logan, 35, reached a plea agreement with the commonwealth’s attorney and entered a guilty plea in Whitley County Circuit Court on possession of a forged instrument charges and theft by deception over $300.

According to Commonwealth’s Attorney Allen Trimble, Logan could face 10 years in prison and will have to pay “a little more than $7,000” in restitution to the “Parents for Play” account.

Trimble said the Parents for Play account was set up by parents at Corbin Preschool to help fund an indoor playground for students. The playground was built in the fall of 2005, but money remained in the account.

According to the indictment, in December 2006, Logan began forging the signature of a former employee on checks for the account and withdrawing the money from banks in the Corbin-Tri County area. The thefts took place while Logan was a secretary at the school, according to Trimble.

Logan was also indicted in Knox and Laurel counties because she withdrew some of the money from the Parents for Play account in Knox County portions of Corbin and Laurel County in North Corbin.

On April 27, Logan pleaded guilty in Knox County Circuit Court on charges of possession of a forged instrument and theft by unlawful taking over $300. In Knox County, she faces one to five years on both counts and she has been ordered to pay restitution.

Trimble said the $7,000 Logan will have to pay in Whitley County is only a small portion of the overall restitution.

“I believe that the restitution in the Knox and Laurel cases will be in excess of $35,000,” Trimble said, “...which she will have to start paying after she serves jail time.”

Logan will be formally sentenced in Knox and Whitley counties in August. She is scheduled for a pretrial conference in Laurel County next week.