Woman also ordered to pay $2,500 restitution
A former support worker at a group home in Woodstock was sentenced to eight months in jail on July 28 for defrauding three special-needs clients.
Sherry Lynn Williams, 61, of Woodstock, appeared in provincial court for sentencing after pleading guilty to three charges laid by Woodstock Police. In addition to the jail time, Judge Rose Campbell also placed Williams on probation for 12 months and ordered her to pay $2,500 in restitution.
Williams appeared stunned by the decision as sheriffs took her away. Her defence lawyer’s request for house arrest hinged on Williams’ ongoing treatment for terminal cancer. But Judge Campbell said Williams’ crimes were perpetrated on vulnerable disabled victims while she was in a position of trust and her actions must be condemned.
Williams was charged with three counts of theft and three counts of fraud stemming from three separate incidents in Woodstock between Feb. 19, 2019, and June 7, 2019; between March 6, 2019, and April 22, 2019; and between Jan. 13, 2017, and June 5, 2019.
She pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud under $5,000 and one count of fraud over $5,000. The Crown withdrew the three theft charges. The victims were special needs adults, all female clients with the Community Residential Living Board, who were living at a group home on Richmond Street in Woodstock.
Williams was employed as a support worker at the group home for 29 years and was in a position of trust when she used the bank cards of three female special needs clients to pay her own bills and make personal transactions to support her gambling addiction. Over $23,000 was stolen from three disabled women. One client, who was non-verbal, lost $19,970 over two years between 2017 and 2019. The other two clients each lost $1,757 and $1,065 in 2019.
Williams committed the thefts until other staff discovered discrepancies on some bank statements. The Crown said the bank statements identified went back two years. Williams admitted taking the money and expressed remorse.
She was employed by the province to provide services to residents of the group home and was entrusted with their bank cards to help meet their needs. She had no prior criminal record. She left her job at the group home in 2019 due to her illness and has been living on disability benefits. Williams was also ordered to have no contact with the complainants.
