The South Carolina State Board of Education has revoked the state teaching certificate of a Florence County School District One teacher who was accused of forging more than $45,000 in checks that she stole from an acquaintance’s check book.
Beverly Roy Steele, who resigned from the district after her May 2020 arrest, did not respond to the state board’s notice of hearing, according to Tuesday’s Order of Revocation.
“Ms. Steele has been given fair notice of constitutional due process … and is now in default.”
Steele was arrested in May 2020 and charged with 66 counts of forgery. She faced up to five years in prison for each count.
According to a news release from Florence County Sheriff’s Office at the time, investigators found that Steele had “removed numerous checks from the victim’s residence and afterward presented 66 checks for proceeds in varying amounts after forging the victim’s signature.”
The total amount she is accused of stealing is $45,707.
In May 2021, she pleaded guilty to one felony count of forgery and was sentenced to five years of probation and ordered to pay $46,162 in restitution, according to the state board.
The state board suspended Steele from teaching in March 2021, 10 months after Steele’s arrest and resignation, stating, “The SCDE has reason to believe that, due to the serious nature of these allegations of misconduct, Ms. Steele may pose a threat to the health, safety and welfare of students … emergency action is required.”
In October 2021, two civil judgments were filed against Steele ordering her to pay $220 and $128.75 in fees to the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
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Liz Farrell is the new executive editor at FITSNews. She was named 2018’s top columnist in the state by South Carolina Press Association and is back after taking a nearly two-year break from corporate journalism to reclaim her soul. Email her at liz@fitsnews.com or tweet her @ElizFarrell.
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