Former Prince George’s school board member sentenced for school-lunch theft

Lynette Mundey, 34 claims she has been singled out because of her race, and because she raised tough questions while on the board.

Upper Marlboro MD — A former member of the Prince George’s County school board has been sentenced to probation for using an assistance program for low-income families to get free school lunches for her own child.

Lynette Mundey, 34, was convicted in February on charges that she misused the free school lunch program, intended for families with a combined annual income of $40,000 or less.
When she was indicted, Mundey was making $93,000 annually as an education board member and a federal employee. The lunches were valued at about $1,700.

On Friday, she was sentenced to three years of supervised probation and was ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.

Mundey was, and is, a federal employee of the Government Accountability Office, and it was that agency that discovered that she was one of six GAO employees from the county who had underreported their incomes to qualify for the program for their children.

In court, Mundey’s attorney said Mundey is on paid administrative leave from the GAO and is in the process of being fired. Mundey resigned suddenly from the school board last June; she was indicted in August.

Prosecutor Jeremy Robbins told the court that Mundey used an inactive social service case number to defraud the school system. Outside the courtroom, Mundey said that number had been legitimately assigned to her years earlier.

Mundey maintains that she only made a mistake in leaving the income field on a form blank and did not intend to deceive the government into thinking she had no income. She also claims she has been singled out because of her race, and because she raised tough questions while on the board.

“We treated this case the same way we treat all cases,” said John Erzen, spokesman for the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office. “She broke the law, and she was convicted of breaking the law after a trial and was held accountable.”

In handing down the sentence, Judge Michael Pearson said similar theft cases would not result in jail time. However, he admonished Mundey for an outburst she displayed when the jury verdict came back, calling her behavior “appalling” and “absolutely ridiculous.”

Erzen said he hopes this case sends a message to would-be financial criminals: “It’s not worth it, we will hold you accountable, you will end up with a felony conviction,” he said. “That’s something you carry with you for the rest of your life.”

>>>via WTOp

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Former Md. education official to be sentenced in free-school-lunch fraud case

Lynette Mundey became upset and had to be removed from the courtroom

A former Maryland education official is scheduled for sentencing Friday morning after she was convicted of fraudulently obtaining free school lunches.

A jury convicted Lynette Mundey of felony theft, welfare fraud and other related charges in February after a federal investigation found she stole more than $1,700 worth of subsidized lunches over about four years.

Mundey, who served as a member of the Prince George’s County Board of Education and works for the U.S. Government Accountability Office, was among several employees in the federal agency charged after an audit uncovered the fraud.

Mundey earned an income of $70,000 to nearly $95,000 but falsely filled out applications to obtain free or reduced-price school meals, prosecutors said. Families typically receive federal school lunch benefits when their reported income, depending on household size, is between $11,600 and $40,000.

A reduced-price lunch costs 40 cents, according to Prince George’s County Public Schools. Full-price lunches cost $2.75 for elementary school students and $3 for middle- and high-school students.

Six others were charged in 2015 following the GAO audit for obtaining a total of nearly $11,500 in reduced lunches, according to prosecutors.

Despite salaries ranging from $55,000 to $78,000, some of those families underreported their income or reported having no income, county and federal officials said.

Barbara Rowley, Jamilah Reid, Tracy Williams, Charleen Savoy and Terri Pinkney were convicted in connection with the case. Charges against James Pinkney were dropped after his wife, Terri, pleaded guilty to making a false statement on an application for public assistance.

Many who have been convicted have been required to pay restitution or perform community service as part of their sentences.

via Washington post

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PG school board member Lyn Mundey tries to rescind the resignation.

PG school board member Lyn Mundey  who resigned in June 2015 tries to rescind the resignation.

PRINCE GEORGE’S CO., Md. – According to  (WJLA),  Prince George’s County school board member Lyn Mundey who was indicted August 11, 2015 and five county parents who were each charged with fraud and theft for allegedly lying about their income to get free lunch for their children has written a letter trying to rescind the resignation. In quick turn of events, the Board of Education for Prince George’s County refused to consider the request.

The supremacy battle between former board member Lyn Mundey and Prince George’s County school board, as You can see is playing out in the county and turning ugly prompting each leader to hold a separate meeting and tear each other apart like Hyenas eating a Wildebeest alive!

The advise to the Board to reject Lyn Mundey to rejoin the Board came from Ms. Abbey Hairston (Board counsel) who is facing fraud charges herself in Federal court for engaging in conspiracy to defraud, fraud inter alia. (See Federal case 8:14-cv-02334-PJM). Reporters in Washington DC metro area are asked to conduct investigative reports to highlight the public interest issues to the county and to help fix the county schools without fear or favor.

ABC 7 News reporter Brad Bell was live in Prince George’s County with the latest news on this developing story.

>>> Read more 

Ms. Abbey Hairston (Board counsel) is accused of engaging in fraud, conspiracy to defraud inter alia and she is accused of swindling the county millions of dollars for personal gain together with co-conspirators. She must step aside ASAP! Union members, Staff and Parents of Prince George’s County are asked to exercise their rights in rejecting her candidacy to the Board of Education for Prince George’s County as a lawyer. She appears to be the spear of corruption. 

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Prince George’s school board member announces resignation Plans

…..to pursue degree in education

PGCPS District 7 school board member Lyn Mundey.

School Board member Lyn J. Mundey (Dist. 7) of Upper Marlboro announced June 1 that she is resigning from the Prince George’s County school board prior to the start of the next school year.

“This is not a decision made in haste. The work that I’ve done has galvanized me to do work that brings me closer to the students,” Mundey said. “It really is bittersweet. I’ve learned a lot in my two years on the board.”

Mundey said she will be pursuing a doctorate in education at Walden University, an online college based in Minneapolis, Minn., and taking her experiences on the school board to a different level.

“I want to eventually move from the work I’ve been doing with the government as an internal auditor to working in education full-time,” Mundey said. “I find that what excites me is to be impactful in the lives of students day-to-day.”

During her tenure on the board, Mundey founded an annual Boardwalk Event to promote wellness for students, staff and the community, founded a “Write-On Writing Workshop” beginning in the fall, to support students in grades six through 12 in becoming better writers, and served on a number of committees.

“The Prince George’s County Board of Education extends its appreciation to Lyn Mundey for her service as a Board of Education Member in District Seven over the past two years. We thank her for the service and we wish her the best in future endeavors,” board chair Segun Eubanks said in an email statement Tuesday.

Mundey’s resignation will be effective Aug. 24, unless someone is appointed to fill her seat before that date, so as to provide a smooth transition and continue representation in her district, Mundey said.

Board member Edward Burroughs (Dist. 8) said Mundey was a valuable independent voice on the board.

“In an environment where you’re pressured to ‘go along to get along,’ she always put kids at the forefront,” Burroughs said. “I know that she is going to return more equipped to fight for the kids she cares so deeply about when she gets her Ph.D. in education.”

Mundey’s resignation is the second for her district in two years. Mundey was appointed to the board in August 2013 by County Executive Rushern L. Baker (D) following the July resignation of former District 7 board member Carletta Fellows.

Fellows resigned citing personal reasons after clashing with the board on several issues, including her use of her board-issued credit card.

Under legislation passed by the General Assembly in 2013, Baker has authority to appoint members to the board to fill any vacancies.

Mundey’s seat will come up for election in November 2016.

Via Gazzette

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Ms. Mundey Swearing-In Ceremony.

…Board of Education Swearing-In Ceremony 9/16/13

Lyn J. Mundey

Lyn Mundey was sworn in Monday as the newest member of the Prince George’s County Board of Education.

Mundey replaces former school board member Carletta Fellows, who resigned in July after serving six months on the board. Prince George’s County Executive Rushern L. Baker III (D) appointed Mundey to the District 7 seat last month. Read full article >> The Washington Post

>>Watch the video

Ceremony in pictures

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