‘Unconscionable — with an exclamation point’

Embezzler gets 5 months in jail, probation for stealing from SCHS Music Boosters
By: 
Lee Pulaski
City Editor

Aleta Young, the former treasurer for the Shawano Community High School Music Boosters Corporation, will spend five months in jail with three years of probation after embezzling more than $9,000 from the nonprofit group dedicated to helping the community’s young musicians.

Shawano-Menominee County District Attorney Greg Parker had recommended six months in jail for the felony, while Young’s attorney, Randall Petrouske, recommended no jail time but 500 hours of community service in lieu of jail time. Langlade County Judge John Rhode felt that some penalty should be included but noted that Young has already paid off what she owed the Music Boosters, so he decided on five months in jail instead at a sentencing hearing on Feb. 18.

The sentence included restitution to the Music Boosters for the amount stolen, which has already been made, along with 100 hours of community service, as recommended by Parker. There is a $250 fine, and Young must write a letter of apology to the Music Boosters.

Parker said Young’s actions, in his view, could be described in one word: “Unconscionable — with an exclamation point.” He noted that the money stolen wasn’t to finance gambling or drug addictions, as was typical of embezzlers, but she still personally gained from it.

“This situation comes down to one thing, and that she is a thief,” Parker said.

The sentence concludes a case that started on April Fools Day 2019 when the Music Boosters, which formed in October 2010, filed a report with the Shawano Police Department outlining that Young had been embezzling the money. Jill Sousek, SCHS orchestra teacher who is one of three teachers that receives assistance from the group for concerts and other music activities, testified at the hearing that there were indications Young had been stealing money from as far back as 2016.

“While many reasons or excuses may exist, the money Ms. Young had stolen had been given in good faith by business donors, community members, parents and proud patrons who support the Shawano Community High School music programs,” Sousek said. “Her actions not only affected the Music Boosters Corporation, but our music students who directly benefit from funding for Music Booster scholarships and activities.”

Sousek told the judge that Young had created an atmosphere of mistrust and used “deceit, subterfuge and the abuse of a position of power” through her actions. Since the news of the embezzling hit the public’s purview, loyal donors have turned away from the organization, she said, uncertain if their money will reach its destination.

Sousek and others testifying for the Music Boosters also took exception to the fact that Young was at home via Zoom for the hearing, while the witnesses needed to come in person.

Sousek noted that Young’s actions also affected Sacred Heart Catholic School and its parish, where Young served as the school’s principal.

“While this might not mean anything to you, it did to the students you stole from, the community members you stole from and this organization you stole from,” Sousek said. “As a thief, you inflicted this drama onto yourself, and that’s why you’re sitting here today. You did this all for your own benefit. No one helped you. You didn’t know it, but at the time, you were the star of your own drama, playing the role of the thief.”

Sondra Guetschow, the current president for the Music Boosters, pointed out that Young had been sketchy and verbally abusive to her since the beginning. She testified that the group tried to pay for nationally acclaimed musician Mark Woods for an event several years ago and discovered the account was practically empty.

“If we only knew there was $2.84 in the checking account at that very time,” Guetschow said, noting that when she became president, she wanted more than just Young’s name on the corporation’s account. “I wanted to make sure that our Music Boosters were safe because you thought I was attacking your character. I wasn’t aware that embezzlement was already happening.”

Guetschow said that Young constantly claimed she was being blindsided and unprofessionally attacked by sneaky members of the group.

“I wasn’t the one being sneaky, Aleta. That was you,” Guetschow said. “I was still naive at that point, not knowing how evil you really were.”

Young paid about $1,000 to the Music Boosters prior to her being found guilty on Nov. 13, but Michelle Oss, a member of the Music Boosters and a teacher with the Shawano School District, noted that repayment was never offered until criminal charges had been filed. Oss noted that Young is only showing remorse because she got caught.

“You are imparting knowledge and life skills to students,” Oss said. “I pray that you did not impart this life skill to any of your students to continue covering up for the wrongs that you did.”

Petrouske, the defense attorney, claimed that punishment like a jail sentence would be a “visceral” thing and said that Young was ready to repay what she had taken even before charges were filed.

“These were desperate acts,” Petrouske said. “She was someone whose entire world was crumbling at the time. Financially, she was in tatters. Her marriage, as a consequence, was in tatters, and she did something that was wrong.”

Young apologized for “the choices she made” and said she appreciated hearing from the victims, noting it was something she needed to hear.

“I can honestly say I was in survival mode, and I didn’t ask for help,” Young said. “I didn’t handle it the correct way.”

Rhode noted in his sentence that Young is a 48-year-old woman that had a spotless legal record, but now, “she’s gone from a well-respected citizen to a felon, just like that.”


lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com