Anthony Houston, 46, of Cincinnati, appeared in Butler County Common Pleas Court today where he pleaded guilty to theft, a fifth-degree felony, according to prosecutors.
Houston, a 22-year veteran of the department, forged medical documents and as a result received pay of $5,867.02, according to Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser.
The crimes occurred from August 2015 to September 2016. A grand jury indicted Houston in January on four felony counts of and felony count of theft.
Gmoser said the forgery charge, which were allied offenses, were merged. While he could have been found guilty of the charges, Houston could only have been sentenced for theft.
“He admitted the truth of all the charges,” Gmoser said. “This has never been about time (in jail). You don’t defraud your employer and you don’t defraud your city employer.”
Defense Attorney David Washington said the only thing Houston pleaded guilty to was theft and the forgery charges were dismissed. He declined further comment until after sentencing.
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Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 13 by Judge Jennifer McElfresh. Houston faces six to 12 months in jail.
Houston was scheduled to go to trial on Aug. 18.
According to Scott Scrimizzi, Houston remains on unpaid leave, but now further proceedings will move forward.
“I think the facts speak for themselves with today’s guilty plea,” Scrimizzi said. “As I said when Houston was originally charged, we hold our public safety professionals to a higher standard and this type of behavior will not be tolerated. Now that the criminal proceeding is over, we will be moving forward with Houston’s pre-disciplinary hearing regarding his status with the department.”
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