Georgia Court Employee Accused of Theft by Taking

A court employee in Dawson County is accused of stealing thousands of dollars paid for traffic fines.

For the past few years, anyone in Dawson County who needed to pay a traffic ticket would hand over their money to probate clerk Julie Honea. Investigators said for the past several months, Honea, 51, was actually pocketing the money.

“She was a trusted employee,” said Judge Jennifer Burt.

Burt said she is still in shock. She said an internal audit found the alleged misconduct by her 10-year employee.

“Of course you learn to trust someone that's worked for you that long,” said Burt.

Dawson County sheriff’s investigators filed theft by taking charges against Honea on Tuesday, accusing her of pocketing more than $6,400 over the past several months.

Investigators believe Honea tried to fool the system by marking the fines as suspended or waived in the computer before taking the cash.

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Court Employee Accused of Stealing Thousands Paid for Traffic Fines