LMRFD embezzlement case may be knocked down to misdemeanor
DOLAN SPRINGS – An assurance of a misdemeanor conviction is the main sticking point in plea negotiations involving a firefighter being prosecuted for embezzling more than $24,000 from a Dolan Springs-based fire district. Phillip Picard, 32, was charged with fraud, forgery and theft following an investigation that determined he was paid by claiming hours that he did not work for the Lake Mohave Ranchos Fire District (LMRFD). Deputy Mohave County attorney David Wayt told Mohave County Superior Court Judge Lee Jantzen during a July 29 settlement conference that witnesses, accounting paperwork and a recorded telephone conversation give the state a…