FROM:
Amy Cornell, Public Information Officer CONTACT PERSON:
Sylvia Seidel, Deputy District Attorney
(408) 792-2509 For release on December 12, 2007 WOMAN WHO FAKED PREGNANCY TO GET WELFARE AID SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS IN PRISON 45-year old Lorie Galvin of San Jose was sentenced yesterday to three years and eight months in state prison on four felony charges: Perjury (Penal Code section 118), Fraud in Obtaining Food Stamps and Fraud in Obtaining AFDC (Welfare and Institutions section 10890 (c)(2)), and Acquiring or Retaining Possession of Personal Identifying Information With Intent to Defraud with Prior Conviction (Penal Code section 530.5), and the allegation that Galvin served four prior prison terms. The convictions are a result of investigations conducted by the Department of Motor Vehicles and the District Attorney’s Public Assistance Fraud Division. In July of 2006, Galvin applied for welfare assistance using another woman’s identity and birth certificate, claiming that she was pregnant. In October 2006, she applied for welfare assistance for her unborn child, using her own name. In February 2007, she completed a Statement of Fact Adding a Child for the Social Services Agency, claiming the child was born. She did not supply a birth certificate. In May of 2007, Galvin’s Eligibility Worker requested a copy of the child’s birth certificate and Social Security Card. That same month, an anonymous tip came to the District Attorney’s Public Assistance Fraud Unit, complaining that Galvin was receiving welfare for a child she did not have. An investigation revealed Galvin’s faked pregnancy and birth of a child. Galvin received $4,501 in cash aid and $426 in food stamps before aid was stopped in June of 2007.
Galvin was on parole at the time she committed these offenses for a 2004 conviction of Acquiring or Retaining Possession of Personal Identifying Information with Intent to Defraud (Penal Code section 530.5) and Forgery (Penal Code section 470). Galvin has also suffered two prior felony convictions and one prior misdemeanor conviction for welfare fraud. Anyone with information concerning welfare fraud can contact the Public Assistance Fraud Hotline at (408) 577-7377. ###
Amy Cornell, Public Information Officer CONTACT PERSON:
Sylvia Seidel, Deputy District Attorney
(408) 792-2509 For release on December 12, 2007 WOMAN WHO FAKED PREGNANCY TO GET WELFARE AID SENTENCED TO THREE YEARS IN PRISON 45-year old Lorie Galvin of San Jose was sentenced yesterday to three years and eight months in state prison on four felony charges: Perjury (Penal Code section 118), Fraud in Obtaining Food Stamps and Fraud in Obtaining AFDC (Welfare and Institutions section 10890 (c)(2)), and Acquiring or Retaining Possession of Personal Identifying Information With Intent to Defraud with Prior Conviction (Penal Code section 530.5), and the allegation that Galvin served four prior prison terms. The convictions are a result of investigations conducted by the Department of Motor Vehicles and the District Attorney’s Public Assistance Fraud Division. In July of 2006, Galvin applied for welfare assistance using another woman’s identity and birth certificate, claiming that she was pregnant. In October 2006, she applied for welfare assistance for her unborn child, using her own name. In February 2007, she completed a Statement of Fact Adding a Child for the Social Services Agency, claiming the child was born. She did not supply a birth certificate. In May of 2007, Galvin’s Eligibility Worker requested a copy of the child’s birth certificate and Social Security Card. That same month, an anonymous tip came to the District Attorney’s Public Assistance Fraud Unit, complaining that Galvin was receiving welfare for a child she did not have. An investigation revealed Galvin’s faked pregnancy and birth of a child. Galvin received $4,501 in cash aid and $426 in food stamps before aid was stopped in June of 2007.
Galvin was on parole at the time she committed these offenses for a 2004 conviction of Acquiring or Retaining Possession of Personal Identifying Information with Intent to Defraud (Penal Code section 530.5) and Forgery (Penal Code section 470). Galvin has also suffered two prior felony convictions and one prior misdemeanor conviction for welfare fraud. Anyone with information concerning welfare fraud can contact the Public Assistance Fraud Hotline at (408) 577-7377. ###