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Shopping addict gets probation Woman embezzled to support sprees By Chris Bristol A self-described shopping addict who embezzled money from a Medford real estate company and the Roosevelt Elementary PTO has been placed on five years of supervised probation. In a deal with prosecutors, Debra Kathryn Alexander pleaded guilty Thursday to a single felony charge of first-degree theft. As part of the deal, she agreed to pay $50,562.98 in restitution, including a $20,000 payment by 5 p.m. today. Prosecutor Karen Loomis said she approved the deal because Alexander, 47, took responsibility for her crimes and had no prior record. "It's not every day that somebody ... comes in with $20,000 and is willing to set up payments and make a commitment to making right what they did wrong," Loomis said. Alexander owes more than $37,000 to the Realestaters office at 206 S. Riverside Ave., where she was the business manager. Loomis said Alexander plundered trust and payroll accounts. Alexander also embezzled $5,304 from a secretary's trade group and $7,425 from the Roosevelt Elementary parent-teacher organization, for which she once served as secretary. Her husband, Dennis Alexander, was PTO president. He was never implicated in the case, and both resigned their positions. Some of the restitution goes to insurance companies that covered the losses. In an interview last year, Alexander said she was addicted to shopping and that she stole the money to pay bills so her husband wouldn't find out. Defense attorney Jeni Feinberg in court Thursday referred to her client's "compulsive behavior." Jackson County Judge Ray White prohibited Alexander from handling other peoples' money and ordered her to undergo counseling at the discretion of probation officials. After Alexander's arrest last year, Medford school district officials pledged to tighten accounting controls for PTOs and other booster clubs. Then, the Roosevelt PTO checking account required only one signature. The initial $20,000 restitution payment will come from Dennis Alexander's retirement account, Loomis said. Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA