School Official Who Helped Sick Student Arrested for Fraud

A high-ranking school official in Indiana was arrested for using her son’s insurance to pay for a student’s medical expenses. In January, Casey Smitherman, then superintendent of Elwood Community Schools, took a sick student to the hospital for a checkup. Because the student did not have health insurance, Smitherman used her own son’s insurance to pay for the child’s hospital bills. After her deed was discovered, Smitherman was arrested for insurance fraud, misconduct, and identity theft. She was later released on bail. A month following her arrest, Smitherman resigned from her post because of the negative attention that she had been receiving. In a statement, Smitherman apologized to the school board, the teachers, and the students of Elwood Community Schools. She acknowledged that what she did was wrong and called it a lapse in judgment. She said that, at the time, she was only concerned about the well-being of her student. The Indiana district’s school board showed understanding toward Smitherman, believing that she only acted out of concern. Despite this, the school board quickly accepted her resignation after a unanimous vote. Outside Elwood Community Schools, Smitherman’s case garnered mixed reactions from the public. A person close to the student’s family disapproved of her actions, saying that they were inappropriate and unnecessary. On the other hand, a retired police officer said that Smitherman did not really commit a mistake, but an illegal choice. The head of the Elwood district’s teachers union has the same opinion. He recognized Smitherman’s concern for the student but nonetheless agreed that she should undoubtedly be criminally charged for violating the law.