NORFOLK, Va. – An indicted candidate running for Congress will face trial on June 12, the same day as the democratic primary.
Shaun Brown, a Democrat, pleaded not guilty to all of the charges she faces during a court hearing on Wednesday. “I’m looking forward to my name being cleared,” she said outside of the courthouse.
The indictment says 58-year-old Shaun Brown worked with Virginia non-profit JOBS Community Outreach Development Corporation and reportedly stole from the USDA’s Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), a federally-funded program to feed children during the summer when free-lunch programs stop at the end of the school year, in 2011 and 2012.
Brown was responsible for running the SFSP for JOBS, and in 2012, Brown and others submitted fraudulent claims for reimbursement, according to the indictment. As part of the scheme, she would direct staff to inflate the numbers of children actually fed and falsify documents in order to obtain additional money.
Now, her trial will be the same day as the primary. “I’m running for Congress. The trial date is being set for June 12, the day of the primary,” she said. “You can put two and two together.”
She faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison if convicted
Brown lost the race for the second congressional district seat to Republican Scott Taylor in 2016.
