A woman with the “dubious honor” of embezzling the largest amount of money in the state of Montana’s history will spend the next 75 months behind bars.

Susan Campbell, 58, was sentenced in federal court Tuesday for stealing $739,312 from the state of Montana while an accountant for the state Department of Administration. She also defrauded the Internal Revenue Service of $234,554, for a total of $973,866.

She was ordered to pay back all $973,866 as part of her sentence.

Campbell tearfully apologized to her family, to her former co-workers, and to the people of Montana for the thefts, saying she put in 26 years of honest work at the state, only to throw it away while trying to help her son, Patrick Brownback, 33, with his gambling problem.

“I destroyed that faith and trust for a member of my family who convinced me if I didn’t help him he would perish,” Campbell said.

The guideline range for sentencing on two of the charges — defrauding the state and income tax evasion — was 41 to 51 months, since Campbell has no previous criminal history. However, the third charge of identity theft, for cashing checks she made out to her husband’s business allegedly without his knowledge, has a mandatory sentence of two years that must be served consecutively to the first two charges.

Sheryl Olson, deputy director of the Department of Administration, worked with Campbell for 22 years, and bestowed upon her the “dubious honor” distinction as Olson spoke at the sentencing Tuesday as a public official on behalf of state taxpayers. Olson decried Campbell’s actions as a betrayal of trust to every taxpayer in Montana, as well as to those who worked beside her every day and state employees in general.

“The money Ms. Campbell stole would have supported 19 households in Montana for a year. It would have provided health insurance for 422 uninsured Montana children for a year. It would have sent 45 Montana students to college for a year,” Olson said, her voice tinged with anger. “This is an affront to every Montana citizen who believes that their government exists to serve the needs of its people.

“Ms. Campbell also betrayed every public servant who works for the state of Montana. As a state employee, we have to perpetually earn and maintain the taxpayers’ respect and trust. What she has done has smeared the reputation for all of us.”

Olson talked about how Campbell would bring birthday cakes and ask about co-workers’ children, even as she was stealing their computer passwords and making out checks to her husband’s business for work never requested nor completed.

“The blast of silence from her co-workers when learning of her betrayal in June of 2007 was deafening,” Olson said as Campbell hung her head and dabbed at tears. “She betrayed those who counted her as a friend. She betrayed me. As a result of her betrayal, she has created a legacy of shame.”

As part of that legacy, the state is holding training sessions on fraud prevention awareness for its employees. The governor’s office has formed a task force on internal controls, and state policies are being rewritten. In addition, the legislative auditor’s office is conducting an audit of the Department of Administration focusing on the methods of embezzlement used by Campbell.

“It’s no coincidence there are eleven attorneys working on this case,” Olson added, as she implored U.S. District Court Senior Judge Charles Lovell to do everything within his power to see that every cent of the taxpayers’ money be returned to the state.

The state had safety procedures in place, like making two people approve checks, to prevent this type of fraud. But as a 32-year employee Campbell found ways to get around those procedures, like stealing co-workers’ computer passwords to get that two-person approval.

Her illegal acts were uncovered by fellow employees. When confronted last June, Campbell initially denied taking the money but later admitted to it and was fired. An audit showed 20 illegal payments made to her husband’s company, which had a contract with the state, ranging in amounts from $7,951 to $66,521.

Campbell, who was also an accountant for her husband’s company, would put the state checks into his account, then wrote checks from the business to herself, her son and her daughter-in-law.

The state has filed a civil suit against Campbell and her husband’s company, JTA, on a variety of theft and fraud charges. Her son isn’t currently a co-defendant, but is named as a

participant in the alleged thefts.

Brownback also recently pleaded guilty in state court to theft, and is slated to be sentenced by Judge Jeffery Sherlock at 1:30 p.m. Dec. 15. Lewis and Clark County Attorney Leo Gallagher said Brownback is believed to have stolen up to $1 million, and faces up to 10 years in jail.

“The victim in this case is Jack’s Technical Assistance, the company primarily owned by Jack Campbell,” Gallagher said.

In a sentencing memorandum, Campbell’s attorney William Hooks wrote that the extent of Brownback’s gambling problem is evident in the fact that “even after his mother admitted her conduct, Pat wrote 68 bad checks, mostly to casinos, for $20,645.”

Richard Emery, a clinical psychologist treating Susan Campbell, said she had an overwhelming need to care for her children because of her family circumstances growing up and an abusive first marriage. Brownback apparently had a “contentious” relationship with his stepfather, which led Susan Campbell to give her son “fairly large sums” of money when he begged for it, Emery said.

“She knew at the time it was wrong … but she was able to kind of put it out of her mind through denial and compartmentalization,” Emery said. “She pushed it to the back of her mind and didn’t think of the consequences.”

The state has been reimbursed for $239,000 for the loss through its insurance company. Campbell said her son sold his house and gave her $18,000 to go toward restitution, as will her entire $130,600 retirement account plus $14,000 in savings. She also mentioned selling $9,660 in jewelry and has $34,500 in state-deferred compensation to go toward her debt.

Hook asked if Campbell could be allowed to “self-report” to a federal prison in California or Arizona where she has family members, but the judge ordered her into custody immediately to begin serving 51 months for embezzlement and tax evasion, followed by 24 months for identity theft.

Reporter Eve Byron: 447-4076 or eve.byron@helenair.com