Trial delayed for couple in Davis fraud case

The federal trial for two former Davis County School District officials accused of bilking the district out of $4.3 million in federal education funds has been delayed until April.

John and Susan Ross, who were indicted by a federal grand jury, were scheduled to stand trial in February. However, a federal judge has granted a defense motion to have the trial begin on April 7 to give defense attorneys time to work on the case.

According to charges, Susan Ross supplied the Davis County School District with illegally photocopied versions of books at inflated prices through a company she owned. The money was paid through the district's federal Title I program for disadvantaged students, of which she was in charge. Her husband, John Ross, was her direct supervisor at the time. Prosecutors say the scheme ran for several years.

In October, a former secretary of Susan Ross pleaded guilty in federal court of running her own fraud scheme. Stella Smith admitted defrauding the district out of $333,133 when she billed the district for textbooks it never received between 1993 and 2005. Smith is expected to be sentenced on Feb. 12.

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