Former Monroe County public administrator gets ‘shock’ jail time for theft

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

EDITOR'S NOTE: The details of Chase's sentence have been corrected.

Former Monroe County Public Administrator Jessica Chase was sentenced to a 120-day "shock" incarceration program on Wednesday, according to online court records.

Records indicate that if Chase completes the program, she will serve five years of supervised probation, and a 10-year prison sentence if her probation is revoked.

Chase, 49, of Paris, pleaded guilty to financially exploiting a disabled person, stealing and filing false documents.

She served in the public administrator role from 2021 through February 2024, according to prior court records, and was accused of stealing money “from the custodial accounts of disabled persons under her care,” according to a release from the Monroe County prosecutor.

A federal investigation is still pending with the Social Security Administration, the prosecutor’s office wrote.

The probable cause statement in the case accuses Chase of taking at least $16,000 in purchases and cash withdrawals from victim’s accounts between March 16-Dec. 22, 2023. The prosecutor's office wrote that roughly $23,000 was stolen in total.