Gwendolyn M. Hemphill, a former official of the Washington Teachers’ Union, was sentenced on May 22 to 11 years in prison for stealing money from union members. U.S. District Judge Richard J. Leon asked that Ms. Hemphill complete three years of community service after her prison term. She will have to repay, along with her co-conspirators, the $4.2 million they stole from the District of Columbia union. She is scheduled to begin her sentence on July 22. Ms. Hemphill was found guilty last August of 23 charges related to fraud and embezzlement. James O. Baxter II, a former union treasurer who was convicted with her, was scheduled to be sentenced this week. Barbara A. Bullock, the former WTU president, was convicted in 2003 and is serving a nine-year prison sentence for her leading role in the scheme.
A version of this article appeared in the June 07, 2006 edition of Education Week
