Lawyer avoids prison for $500,000 embezzlement
By Craig Kapitan - Express-News
A San Antonio attorney who pleaded no contest to plundering her senile grandmother's multimillion-dollar fortune gave up her legal career Tuesday but was spared a trip to prison.
Despite showing Michelle Lorenz Valicek, 54, leniency by ordering deferred adjudication probation instead of the 10- to 20-year term sought by prosecutors, visiting Judge George Godwin predicted during the sentencing hearing that she eventually would end up in prison.
“This will be a miracle if we can keep you out of the penitentiary,” Godwin said as he referenced Valicek's recent misdemeanor arrests, self-admitted substance abuse issues, “clear ... mental problems” and apparent denial of responsibility for the case at hand.
The rest of the story:
