FORMER STATE EMPLOYEE CONVICTED FOR STEALING $24,595

Attorney General J. Joseph Curran, Jr. announced today that Kimberley Lyn Cudanin, 28, was convicted on February 6, 2003 in the Baltimore City Circuit Court of stealing $24,595 from the Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) program, a continuing education program taught at the University of Maryland teaching facility in Baltimore City. The Honorable Carol E. Smith imposed the sentence recommended by the State, being five years incarceration, suspending all but four months; followed by five years of supervised probation with the condition that Kimberly Cudanin pay $24,595 in restitution.

Kimberley Cudanin stole the money in a continuing scheme between December 4, 1998 and September 5, 2000 (while she was working for the Maryland Institute for Emergency Services Systems). During this time period, she was employed to organize the ATLS courses, collect fees from physicians taking the courses, and deposit the money in the ATLS bank account. According to the investigation by the Office of the Attorney General, Criminal Investigations Division, Cudanin took numerous checks received as fees for the ATLS program, added her name as "payee" on the checks, and cashed them. Cudanin was terminated from employment on January 12, 2001.

"Ms. Cudanin simply made the checks payable to herself and cashed them," Attorney General Curran said. "In addition to having to pay back the money, she must spend four months in jail and five years on supervised probation."

This case was prosecuted by the Criminal Investigations Division of the Maryland Attorney General’s Office, with the assistance of ATLS.

#