In a court appearance Friday morning, fired Aurora Police Officer Kimberly Hanson was scheduled for another court appearance next month.
She is next to appear for a status hearing at 9 a.m. Feb. 28 before Judge Todd B. Tarter of Aurora Branch Court, according to online court records.
Hanson arrived early for her appearance Friday, waiting on a lobby bench until it was time. She chose a seat in the front row of the courtroom, where she could easily communicate with her attorney, David Camic, as he made the arrangements for Hanson’s next hearing without having her called.
Hanson, 43, of Plano, is charged with theft by deception, accused of making up a fake motorist assist call in order to extend her shift one day in September, allowing her to collect $71.14 in overtime pay.
Hanson told police department investigators she fabricated the call after struggling personally since the death of her infant son weeks after his premature birth in 2009, according to records obtained by The Beacon-News. Hanson said she needed the time off, according to a transcript of her interview with police department officials investigating the case. She had been dealing with bouts of depression and an overwhelming anxiety to be with her family, according to the transcript.
She was fired in November as a result of the department’s internal investigation into the fabricated call. The charge of theft by deception, brought through a separate criminal investigation, is a misdemeanor.
Twitter @hannahmleone
