A former Cook County
Assessor's employee was sentenced to four years in prison Wednesday for
stealing $170,000 over four years, the Cook County State's Attorney's
Office said in a prepared statement.
Joyce Pierce, 52, of Chicago was manager of the Freedom
of Information department and was arrested in August 2007 after a
routine audit raised questions about an account she supervised. She
pleaded guilty to theft of more than $100,000.
"Pierce used the money to pay for shopping trips to
upscale department stores such as Neiman Marcus, Macy's and
Nordstrom's. Pierce also admitted that she used the funds to pay a
portion of her daughter's college tuition," said prosecutors in a
prepared statement.
Pierce, who started in 1998, was making $78,348 at the time she was arrested.
