Tennessee Woman Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Theft of Social Security Benefits

Judy L. Dinsmore, 58, of Rogersville, Tenn., was sentenced on November 19, 2012, by the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, U.S. District Judge, to serve 30 months in prison.  Dinsmore pleaded guilty in May 2012 to a federal indictment charging her with theft of Social Security benefits.

She was also ordered to pay the Social Security Administration, $167,486 in restitution, a $100 mandatory assessment, and serve three years on supervised release upon her release from federal prison.  

Dinsmore admitted that she arranged to have Social Security Administration deliver 347 monthly Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for a deceased relative to her home, for 29 years after the relative died in 1982.  She accepted the checks, forged the endorsement of the deceased relative on each one, and cashed the checks at a business in Greeneville, Tenn., representing she was the named payee. 

In 2004, Dinsmore was sentenced to serve five months in federal prison after entering a guilty plea to a similar scheme for a different deceased relative.  The total loss caused by Dinsmore to the Social Security Administration is estimated to be approximately $250,000.  Judge Greer noted during sentencing that the need to promote respect for the law was profound in Dinsmore’s case, as demonstrated by the repeat nature of her offenses, the 30-year duration of her offenses, and the volume of the offenses committed.  

The indictment and subsequent conviction of Dinsmore was the result of an investigation conducted by the SSA, Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Helen Smith represented the United States.