A $25 Amazon gift card has sparked a nearly $25,000 investigation in New York, involving the principal of Amagansett School, Maria Dorr.
According to reports from The Wall Street Journal and Newsday, Dorr is accused of stealing a $25 gift card from the school’s mailroom in December 2023.
The allegations have led to a disciplinary trial filled with over 1,400 pages of testimony, numerous witnesses, and 38 security camera recordings. The fees for the arbitrator overseeing the hearing have already surpassed $24,800.
The drama began when a parent brought in two gift cards: one for occupational therapist Chrissy McElroy and another for Cassie Butts, the school’s receptionist.
However, Butts reportedly placed McElroy’s gift card in her mailbox, only for it to go missing shortly after.
Surveillance footage shows Butts entering the school with a red envelope at 8:24 a.m., and leaving just seven seconds later without it.
The footage then shows Dorr entering the building and leaving shortly after, reportedly carrying a pile of papers that included the red envelope.
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Dorr denies taking the gift card, claiming she found a different red envelope at home containing a $50 Shell gas station card, which she assumed was a gift from a family who had previously given her a card.
She testified that things “go missing all the time” in the school, and that false rumors were being spread about her.
The red envelope with the gas station card was later found in Dorr’s recycling bin, and she presented it to the interim superintendent, Richard Loeschner. However, the envelope wasn’t signed, so Loeschner dismissed it.
McElroy reported the card missing to the police, but later asked for the case to be closed.
As a result of the investigation, Dorr was placed on administrative leave in January 2024 and is facing charges of misconduct under New York’s disciplinary proceeding known as 3020-a.
Dorr’s lawyer, Arthur Scheuermann, suggested that the incident may have been a setup to derail Dorr’s bid for the superintendent position.
