In Plea Deal, Dallas Supt. Admits Theft

By Bess Keller

The plea agreement that brought a sudden end last week to Yvonne Gonzalez's stormy tenure as head of the Dallas public schools left school board members, already reeling from two months of soap opera allegations, with a host of new and difficult decisions.

Ms. Gonzalez admitted last week--just six months after she launched a racially charged investigation into school system corruption--that she had illegally used public funds to buy furniture for her home. The school board promptly let her go.

U.S. Attorney Paul Coggins said the 45-year-old administrator had agreed to plead guilty to a federal charge that in January, three weeks after she was named superintendent, she used $9,440 of the district's money to buy a six-piece bedroom suite. The money was not authorized, nor did Ms. Gonzalez intend to pay it back, Mr. Coggins...