Oakland County Woman Sentenced For Impersonating Health Care Worker

HUNTINGTON WOODS, MI — A 38-year-old Huntington Woods woman can serve up to nearly 19 years in prison for impersonating a health care worker and intimidating a witness, according to the Michigan Attorney General's Office.

Kimberly Casey Coden was sentenced on Tuesday to:

• 4-6 years’ incarceration for six counts of Unauthorized Practice of a Health Profession;
• 4-7.5 years’ incarceration for two counts of Identity Theft; and
• 4-6 years’ incarceration for one count of Bribing, Intimidating a Witness.

Coden worked as a director of services at Oxford Recovery Center, a facility that provides services to children diagnosed with Autism in Brighton and Troy, according to officials.

Coden presented herself as a Board-Certified Behavioral Analyst (BCBA), but she was not licensed by the State of Michigan and did not possess the requisite educational background, according to officials.

In addition to the Oxford Recovery Center, where she was employed from 2018 to 2021, Coden also utilized the certification number of a properly board-certified BCBA to obtain employment at Centria Health Care for several months in 2016 and the Positive Behavior Supports Corporation from 2017 to 2018, according to officials.

Additionally, Coden intimidated a witness via text messages to prevent her from testifying against her, according to officials.

"Falsifying credentials to gain access to a highly vulnerable population is unethical and reprehensible," Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said. "I hope this sentence serves as a warning for others that we take the proper training, qualifications, and licensing requirements very seriously and there are real consequences for those who deliberately shirk them."