Ex-County Employee Sentenced to Jail Time, Restitution

The former chief deputy in the Delaware County Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans' Court, who pleaded guilty to third-degree, felony charges of stealing funds from the office, was sentenced on Thursday.

Christine Trout, 52, of Glenolden was sentenced to six- to 23-months in county prison and ordered to pay more than $160,000 in restitution, according to court documents.

Trout stole more than $160,000 from the Register of Wills Office over five years, according to court documents.

She entered a guilty plea in July on charges of theft by unlawful taking and unlawful use of a computer, according to court documents, and theft by deception and receiving stolen property charges against Trout were dismissed.

Kristine Dick, the new chief deputy director in the Delaware County Register of Wills and Clerk of Orphans' Court, told the court Thursday that the staff in the office were anger and felt betrayed by Trout, according to the Delaware County Daily Times.

Trout's lawyer, Philip Charamella, told the court Thursday that many factors, including a prescription drug problem, resulted in Trout's actions, according to the Delco Times.

Trout, a former 32-year county employee, was fired from her position in November 2012 when an investigation began and later revealed that Trout had been stealing cash from the Register of Wills since January 2007.

She would remove cash from files at the end of the work day or the following morning when she conducted the banking and would alter the transaction report to disguise her actions. She would also void completed transactions, take the cash, and then adjust reports so there would be no record of the theft.