Ex-New Mexico Lawmaker Pleads Guilty in School Funds Diversion Case
Former New Mexico lawmaker pleads guilty to state charges for diverting millions in school vocational funds.
A former high-ranking Democratic legislator in New Mexico has pleaded guilty to state charges of fraud and money laundering, admitting to diverting millions of dollars intended for vocational education in the state's largest school district.
Sheryl Williams Stapleton changed her plea during a court hearing on Friday, just three weeks after a federal jury convicted her on dozens of similar charges. State prosecutors had filed charges including racketeering and money laundering against her in 2021, with trial scheduled for October.
Under the plea agreement, all but four charges were dropped. The deal calls for a 10-and-a-half-year prison sentence and restitution of more than $1.8 million.
"Today's guilty plea holds Sheryl Williams Stapleton accountable for defrauding New Mexico taxpayers and abusing the public trust," said Lauren Rodriguez, a spokesperson for the New Mexico Department of Justice. She added that prosecutors are pleased the federal sentencing range will provide a significant period of incarceration beyond what the state system could impose.
Williams Stapleton, a former state House majority leader and administrator with Albuquerque Public Schools, was first elected in 1994. She resigned from the House two days after search warrants were served at her home in summer 2021, and the school district subsequently fired her.
In the federal case, prosecutors said the district paid over $3 million to Robotics Management Learning Systems LLC, a Washington, D.C.-based company central to both state and federal cases. Most of that money came from federal funds meant for vocational education programs.
As the school district's career and technical education director, Williams Stapleton ensured those program funds went to Robotics, which was owned by her friend and federal co-defendant Joseph Johnson. She was accused of shepherding the company's invoices through the procurement process, while Johnson was accused of providing her with blank checks.
Federal prosecutors also presented evidence that Williams Stapleton and Johnson failed to report thousands of dollars in payments from Robotics on their federal income tax returns. Jurors also convicted Johnson in the federal case. Both have yet to be sentenced, and their attorneys have previously indicated they would appeal the federal verdicts.