Paul Bass Photo
Lion leaves courthouse with attorney Donovan (in shades) after plea.
Daniel Lion admitted to manipulating city government’s payroll system to steal $102,947.44 — and now faces up to 21 months instead of 20 years in prison thanks to that admission.
Lion, who’s 64 and lives in Hamden, made the admission Wednesday afternoon during a 70-minute appearance before U.S. District Court Judge Janet Hall.
At the appearance in Courtroom 1 in the Church Street federal courthouse, the retired 42-year city employee pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. He admitted that from 2002 through June 2018, he periodically went into the payroll computer system to issue himself one or two advance vacation checks — then wiped the record of those checks from the system so that he would receive his regular subsequent paychecks as well. (The city allows workers to take advance vacation paychecks.)
The Harp administration discovered the long-term theft in March during an audit of city spending. Lion subsequently retired with a $59,360.70 annual pension. At the time of the discovery, he had been out on medical leave because of a heart attack.
If he hadn’t pleaded guilty, Lion faced up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, over $200,000 in fines, and mandatory restitution for the money he stole.
Under terms of the plea deal revealed during the proceedings Wednesday, the government will recommend that he receive up to 21 months in prison and $75,000 in fines in addition to repaying the city for the lost money.
Dressed in a grey suit, Lion stood beside his attorney Jake Donovan beneath a 15-bulb chandelier (with 14 bulbs lit) before Judge Hall at the outset of the proceeding. Lion’s attorney originally asked for permission for Lion to sit because of back problems. (“No disrespect, your honor.”) Hall told him it’s customary to stand for this portion of the hearing but granted permission to sit if he felt the need.
Lion ended up standing the full 45 minutes as the judge walked him through the rights he would sacrifice (like a jury trial) and the implications (like forfeiting the right to appeal his conviction or any sentence above 21 months) if he were to proceed with the plea. He offered occasional “Yes, your honor“s when called upon to respond.
“Nobody can tell you what your sentence will be, because I don’t know what it will be,” Hall reminded him. “You can’t take back your guilty plea.”
Then Lion sat for five minutes as Assistant U.S. Attorney Ray Miller described the evidence the government was prepared to present at trial absent a guilty plea. Miller said Lion’s periodic thefts grew “much more frequent” in recent years.
The government’s written stipulation describing the crime stated that Lion “periodically issued extra paychecks to himself in addition to his regular salary. To this end, he accessed the City of New Haven’s financial accounting software and issued paychecks to which he was not entitled, typically listing them as vacation pay. Lion caused these additional checks to be printed and then deposited them into his personal bank accounts. He would often delete the computer entries for the extra checks listed as vacation pay, causing the system to also issue his regular paycheck. He deposited these fraudulently obtained funds into his personal bank accounts for his own benefit. During the course of the scheme, Lion took $102,947.44 from the City of New Haven.”
Hall asked Miller about the “interstate wire” part of the fraud, which enabled the government to bring federal charges (often carrying stiffer sentences than state charges). Miller responded that after Lion deposited his checks at his local credit union, they had to be cleared electronically through the Federal Reserve Bank in Massachusetts before the money could be entered into his account. The fed doesn’t have a Connecticut office.
Lion stood back up to sign the plea agreement then enter his plea.
“What’s your plea?” a deputy clerk asked at 2:58 p.m.
“Guilty,” Lion responded.
Lion did not discuss his reason for stealing the money or appeal for mercy. That will wait for his Sept. 4 scheduled sentencing.
Judge Hall agreed to release him until then with the equity in his Hamden home as a guarantee he’ll show up. She noted that he has no prior criminal history.
She left Lion with a warning.
“There are often defendants who get released and make more mistakes,” she said. “For a person facing sentencing, that’s not a good thing.”
