At the beginning of 2024, the Children’s Justice Center (CJC) of Price had reported the misuse of a charge card to Carbon County Sheriff’s Office’s Detective Travis Henrie.
Upon investigation, it was clear that the misuse of funds had occurred. Director Shelley Wright had advised Detective Henrie that the card is used by employees to purchase items for the shelter and these items are requested from different departments within the CJC. An employee, typically Jamie Ellner, would then go to the store and make the requested purchases.
When the card was in use, employees were instructed to return with both the requested items and the receipt. When she looked further into the possible misuse, Wright had discovered that there were many receipts that had not been returned. This was discovered when Wright requested receipts directly from the company that the charge card was attached to.
These receipts, according to Wright, had numerous items that had never been requested and would not be requested by the CJC, as well as food items that would not have been purchased at the time, due to not having children within the shelter then. Upon video surveillance that was retrieved for the investigation, Ellner was documented purchasing items with the card in question.
Ellner was questioned following further investigation. In speaking with an officer with the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office, Taylor Allen Cox, had ultimately admitted to using the card to make unauthorized purchases. Though at the time Ellner had stated that she intended to pay the funds back, she had not.
Due to Ellner knowingly using a financial transaction card to obtain goods that exceeded $1,500 but was less than $5,000, she was charged with a count of unlawful use of a financial transaction card. She was also charged with misuse of public money or public property for using the public property purchased with the card for her own benefit.
On August 12, Ellner faced sentencing. The charge of unlawful use of a financial transaction card and the misuse of public money are both third degree felonies. The former charge was dismissed with prejudice, while Ellner pled guilty on the latter charge.
Initially, Ellner was sentenced to an indeterminate term not to exceed five years in the Utah State Prison. However, the prison term was suspended and Ellner was ordered to pay a restitution in the amount of $3,471 plus interest and was placed on probation for 36 months.