After nearly seven months of court appearances, a former SF State student is in store for her toughest punishment – six days in county jail.
Ex-cheer coach Ashlee Nicole Haley was officially sentenced today after Judge Jeff Ross accepted the prosecution’s recommendation, officially ending her case after she was charged with embezzlement in September.
In addition to serving six days in jail, Haley will serve three years probation, complete 200 hours of community service and pay restitution in the amount of $14,864.02. As part of her probation, she must also submit herself to searches at any time, with our without probable cause.
Haley was initially charged with embezzling $20,000 from fellow teammates and using the money for food, rent and a trip to Las Vegas.
The charges amounted to 12 counts of grand theft, 16 counts of obtaining money under false pretenses and one count of embezzlement. All the charges were dropped with the exception of embezzlement, which she pleaded guilty to March 7.
Once Haley completes her community service and pays restitution, she will be allowed to make a motion to drop her charge from a felony to a misdemeanor.
When the prosecution first made its recommendation, it was after months of negotiations as to the details of a plea bargain.
“It’s not likely that we’ll object to this,” said Sanaz Nikaein, the special district attorney for this case who specialized in large-sum embezzlement, after Haley’s last court appearance.
Ross said his decision to accept the recommendation was based on the probation department’s assessment that Haley would be a good candidate for community service and its belief that she will pay restitution in a timely manner.