Shellie Kristine Smith was sentenced to five years probation Friday for taking almost $4,000 from the Meridian Middle School Parent Teacher Student Administration.

She also will serve 30 days in jail and has to pay a $975.50 fine, after pleading guilty in December, according to court records.

Smith took money from the PTSA in $200 and $400 increments at different times toward the end of the last school year, said Lisa Austin, principal of Meridian Middle School. She took a total of $3,896, Austin said.

Judge Patrick H. Owen granted Smith a withheld judgment. That means if she completes the five years of probation without any problems, she can ask Owen to remove the guilty plea from her record.

Smith has to provide proof to the court every five months that she is paying restitution, prosecutor Jonathan M. Medema said.

“If she willfully chooses not to pay, we’d be back at square one,” he said. “The maximum punishment for grand theft would be 14 years in prison.”

Her next review hearing is scheduled for July 13, according to court records.

The parents run the PTSA, and school officials aren't privy to the group's financial records, Austin said. She said the group allowed its president and treasurer to make withdrawals, without a second signature.

Austin said the group wanted to disband last year because of a lack of financial and member support. The group's money was supposed to go to different departments at the school, but all of it wasn't accounted for.

“My bookkeeper and I asked; we didn’t get anything,” Austin said.

Smith offered excuses at meetings.

Austin said the situation is sad, because Smith was trusted "in good faith" with the money parents and staff earned for the school.

Austin wants the PTSA group to start over fresh, with a new executive board. Austin hopes to keep current members and take on new ones.

“This was one person,” she said. “She said her own finances were really low and she thought she would ‘borrow’ from PTSA and pay it back.”