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To: hdl who wrote (177385)	7/3/2002 10:30:49 PM
From: hdl	Respond to of 436258

hale gets off- no jail time- and less press than a martha. Ex-Hale House Head Pleads Guilty By DEVLIN BARRETT .c The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) - Lorraine Hale, former head of the renowned Hale House, pleaded guilty Wednesday to stealing from the charity for children of drug-addicted mothers as part of a deal to avoid jail. Hale, the 76-year-old daughter of the home's founder, Clara Hale, pleaded guilty to grand larceny. Her husband, Jesse DeVore, 70, pleaded guilty to attempted forgery. The pleas leave them penniless, Lorraine Hale's lawyer said. Authorities have seized $100,000 of their money, and they agreed to forfeit roughly $600,000 as part of the agreement. A February indictment charged the pair with stealing more than $700,000 from Hale House Foundation and diverting about $250,000 in donations to a secret checking account. The couple also cashed in a $488,000 life insurance plan held by the charity, according to the indictment. The couple used the stolen money for home improvements, art and college tuition for Hale's nephew, while hundreds of thousands of dollars were used to support DeVore's troubled theatrical production company, according to the indictment. Hale and her husband agreed to serve five years of probation and to never run another charity. Formal sentencing was set for Oct. 24. ``This closes an unfortunate chapter in the otherwise extraordinary history of Hale House,'' Zachary Carter, the new board chairman, said in a statement. ``We have long since turned our attention to improving the charity's delivery of childcare services and restoring fiscal integrity.'' Hale's lawyer, William Dowling, called the embezzlement ``an aberration'' in her more than 30 years of service. In forfeiting money, the couple ``agreed to try to make Hale House as whole as possible,'' added DeVore's lawyer, Thomas Rotko. The celebrated charity was founded more than 30 years ago by Clara Hale as a refuge for the sick and abandoned babies of drug addicts and AIDS sufferers. A symbol of compassion, Hale House attracted support from thousands worldwide, from Rosie O'Donnell to Princess Diana. Clara Hale died in 1992. Lorraine Hale was removed from the charity in May 2001. The state attorney general began an investigation of Hale House, which has a $10 million endowment, in August 2000 after a series of Daily News articles. 07/03/02 18:43 EDT