Two Court Employees Charged With Stealing Traffic Fine Money From District Court
by Alex Lloyd Gross
Two court employees from Magisterial District Court in Lower Merion, Lisa Shopa of Havertown and Patricia Althouse of Ardmore were charged last month with allegedly stealing money used to pay fines for traffic and parking offenses.
According to police reports, Shopa was the office manager and she allegedly told office staff to issue a hand written receipt for all cash payments for parking violations or motor vehicle violations. It is practice to issue those receipts on a computer, officials said. When the money came in, Shopa would allegedly mark the case as withdrawn , to cover her tracks.
An investigation was launched and it revealed that Althouse, who was the traffic clerk worked with Shopa to allegedly steal the money. The investigation started January 1 2024 and concluded on Oct 31,2024. Police said the total amount reported missing was just under $7500.00.
DA Kevin Steele also noted that Montgomery County court administrators are correcting the errors in the dockets and the court record caused by the defendants’ actions. Court administration is also working to correct any false or absent reporting to other governmental agencies derived from these false records.
Shopa was arrested on Dec. 23, 2024, and charged with multiple felonies, including Tampering with Public Records, Theft by Unlawful Taking, Receiving Stolen Property, Theft by Failing to Make Required Deposits, Unlawful Use of Computer and Computer Trespass, as well as several misdemeanor charges. She was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Adam T. Katzman on Dec. 23, 2024, who set bail at
$5,000 unsecured, and she was released. A preliminary hearing was scheduled on
Jan. 23, 2025, before Magisterial District Judge Henry J. Schireson, all charges were
waived to the Court of Common Pleas.
Alex Lloyd Gross Photo-Delaware Valley News.com File Photo District Attorney Kevin Steele.
Althouse was charged on Feb. 10, 2025, following the continued investigation and review of the Magisterial District Court files by Montgomery County Detectives.She turned herself in on Feb. 12, 2025, to face multiple felony charges, including Theft by Unlawful Taking, Receiving Stolen Property, Theft by Failing to Make Required Deposits, Misapplying Entrusted Government/Financial/Institutional
Property, Securing Executed Documents by Deception, Obstructing the Administration of Law and Other Government Functions, and others. Althouse was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Edward C. Kropp Sr., who set bail at $5,000unsecured.
District Attorney Kevin Steele said the charges are felonies.