Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced that a Hempstead woman was sentenced today to one to three years in prison for stealing more than half a million dollars from a law firm that was the Trustee for seven trust bank accounts that benefitted people with special needs between 2014 and 2021.
Michelle Byrd, 55, pleaded guilty on April 29, 2024, before Judge Helene Gugerty to one count of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree (a C felony) and seven counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree (a D felony).
The defendant was sentenced today to one to three years in prison. NCDA recommended a sentence of four to 12 years in prison.
The defendant paid restitution to the law firm in the amount of $106,287.02 and judgment orders were issued for the benefit of the law firm in the amount of $395,266.41 and $25,000 for the law firm’s insurance company.
“Michelle Byrd had a duty as a case manager for seven trusts to protect the firm’s vulnerable clients and manage their finances appropriately and carefully to ensure that their needs were met,” said DA Donnelly. “Instead, this defendant acted only in her own self-interest, stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from elderly and special needs clients to finance her lifestyle. Her despicable and unconscionable theft forced a wheelchair-bound stroke victim to sell his home because of the financial losses he suffered. Byrd violated her ethical obligations and the trust of the clients she was supposed to serve and will now forfeit her funds and freedom to pay for her crimes.”
DA Donnelly said that Byrd worked for a Nassau County-based law firm that manages trusts for special needs clients. An attorney at the firm served as a trustee on trust accounts that supported seven clients and was the authorized signatory permitted to make disbursements and manage the beneficiaries’ bank accounts and transactions. The defendant, a salaried employee, served as a case manager, and was in frequent contact with trust beneficiaries regarding their financial needs.
From April 2014 to April 2021, the defendant wrote hundreds of checks to herself from seven trust accounts, causing a total loss of approximately $526,553. Byrd forged the signature of the trustee on checks and forged bank statements to conceal the theft.
In April 2021, one of the trust accounts that Byrd helped manage was transferred to Chase bank. Chase bank emailed checks to the law firm’s controller for review. On April 7, 2021, the controller received an email of a check for review drawn on a trust, allegedly payable for $2,500 to Byrd, that was purportedly signed by the trustee. The trustee reviewed the transaction, and the check was cancelled. At that point, the law firm terminated the defendant’s employment, and, after a short internal review, referred the matter to the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office in May 2021.
Between April 2019 and April 2021, there were unauthorized checks to Byrd for approximately $27,730 from a trust established to care for a man with Cerebral Palsy living in a group home in New York City. The checks were forged with both the trustee’s signature and the trustee’s signature stamp, which the firm used during the COVID-19 pandemic to allow for remote management of the trust accounts.
From August 2018 to December 2020, there were unauthorized disbursements to Byrd from a trust established to help a woman who lost her limbs due to medical malpractice, for approximately $99,750. Those checks were forged with both the trustee’s signature and the trustee’s signature stamp.
In January 2020, the defendant forged the signature of the trustee on a check for $2,500, payable to Byrd, from a trust that was set up to care for an elderly man with health issues who resided in a nursing home.
Between March 2019 and January 2021, there were unauthorized disbursements to Michelle Byrd for approximately $32,817 from a trust established to care for an adult who is developmentally disabled with Cerebral Palsy living in a group home in Nassau County. The checks were forged with both the trustee’s purported signature and the trustee’s signature stamp.
Between November 2017 and November 2020, there were unauthorized disbursements to Byrd from a trust established to assist a woman who suffered from a medical episode similar to a stroke. The checks were all forged with the trustee’s signature and totaled approximately $20,770.
Between July 2017 and March 2021, there were unauthorized disbursements to Byrd from a trust established to care for an elderly, developmentally disabled woman. The checks totaled $40,640. Many of these checks were forged with the trustee’s signature and several checks had an unauthorized signature stamp.
Between July 2017 and February 2019, there were unauthorized disbursements to Byrd from a trust that was set up to care for a wheelchair-bound stroke victim. The checks totaled $60,051 and were all forged with the trustee’s signature. Because of the draw down of funds on the victim’s account, the victim’s home needed to be sold.
The defendant voluntarily returned on an arrest warrant on March 8, 2023.
The case is being prosecuted by Senior Investigative Counsel Lauren Littman of the Major Financial Frauds Bureau under the supervision of Bureau Chief Maureen McCormack and under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for the Investigations Division Rick Whelan. The defendant is represented by Xavier Donaldson, Esq.