All things considered, Tammy Smith is a lucky woman. Smith, formerly secretary for International Union of Painters and Allied Trades Local 1922, was sentenced on May 19 in U.S. District Court for the District of Montana to serve two and a half years of probation and ordered to pay restitution and a $500 fine for embezzling more than $11,000 in funds from the Billings union. She pleaded guilty in February following a Labor Department investigation.
Prosecutors had charged that Smith, 40, a resident of Billings, during May 2004-December 2006 illegally diverted dues payments into a personal account and wrote union checks out to herself or cash. Her restitution is on the low side. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica Fehr said Smith actually stole $25,614 from the union but was held accountable for only $11,175 due to expiration of the statute of limitations.