A 2019 felony forgery case is coming to a close with a plea deal entered on Monday, January 24.
Tara L. Woody was indicted in October 2019. The four count indictment includes two charges of uttering and two charges of forgery emerging from two alleged occasions.
“On or about May 19, 2019, in Greenbrier County [Woody] forged check no. 1001 on the account of [victim one], held at City National Bank, in the amount of $55.00, without the permission of [victim one] with intent to defraud,” reads the indictment. “On or about May 16, 2019, [Woody] uttered a forged writing, check no. 1004, drawn on the account of [victim one], [in the amount of $75], held at City National Bank, made payable to Tara Woody, to deposit same to Republic Bank of Chicago to an account of First Century Bank, without the permission of [victim one], knowing the same to have been forged with intent to defraud.”
Greenbrier County Circuit Court Judge Jennifer Dent over saw the hearing and decided if the plea should be accepted or not. She first examined the contents of the plea deal.
“The agreement states in paragraph one that you are going to enter a plea of guilty to [felony] forgery as contained in count one of the indictments,” Dent said. “… The maximum penalty that you could receive as a result of entering into a guilty plea to the felony offense of forgery [is] an indeterminate period of incarceration in the penitentiary of the state for not less than one year, no more than 10 years, or, in the discretion of the court, confinement with the Regional Jail authority of not more than a year and a fine of not more than $500. Paragraph four indicates that the parties are going to jointly recommend that you’d be sentenced to the maximum period of incarceration, but that the sentence be suspended and that you’d be placed on probation for a period of one year. Paragraph five indicates that there’s restitution of [$130].”
Although both parties, the defense and Greenbrier County Prosecutor’s Office, agreed to recommend probation, Dent ultimately has control over if Woody would serve time or not as a result of the guilty plea.
Going forward with the plea, Dent asked Woody a series of questions.
“Do you admit that you have forged this check?”
“Yes,” Woody responded.
“Are you in agreement with the restitution amount of $130 dollars versus $120?”
“Yes,” Woody responded.
“So are you pleading guilty to forgery, Ms. Woody, because you did in fact do those things?
“Yes,” Woody responded.
Woody also declined to give the court her version of the events and plead guilty to one count of forgery.
Dent accepted the plea and directed the case to the Greenbrier County Probation Department before an expected sentencing hearing, where a presentencing investigation can take place.
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