Federal Grand Jury Returns Charges Against Grant Writer

Last year we reported on the investigation of Jean Cross, her alleged forgeries, and her $5M fee (15% of the grant). Thanks to an anonymous comment on my "About" page, here's an update.

The money was returned. The investigation moved from the State to the Feds. And now, the Grand Jury has indicted her. If found guilty -- up to 35 years in prison.

The interesting thing is that the investigation is closed without others being charged. I guess that's why some clients are so ready to pay a percentage of the take. It seems only the grant writer is at risk.

Image: A page of the Indio Youth Task Force's grant application to the state shows some of the 32 allegedly forged signatures.

Writer of local grant indicted | MyDesert.com | The Desert Sun: "A federal grand jury has indicted grant writer Jean Michele Cross on charges stemming from her involvement in a $35million-plus federal grant that had to be returned.

Cross is charged with mail fraud, document forgery to obtain money and making false statements.

According to a federal grand jury indictment, Cross altered and forged signatures and documents in the grant application and omitted her 15 percent fee from the projected grant budget.

She faces a maximum sentence of 35 years in federal prison if convicted of all charges."

If you prepare Federal applications, you know that the budget cannot include work prior to the contract start date, which is why she wouldn't have included her contract in the grant budget. It will be interesting to see how her contract was structured, who was aware of the terms, and the number of times and amount of money she earned with this type of contract in the past.

To read the local news accounts:

• MyDesert.com
• CalCoastNews.com