Couple didn't defraud district, attorney says

Davis School District and federal accusations that John and Susan Ross inflated the costs on books sold to the district are "all a figment of their imagination," according to Paul Gotay, the Rosses' defense attorney.

Gotay said Davis District isn't out a dime in purchasing copied books from the former employees.

Gotay said Susan Ross, former Title I director for the district, was doing the best she could with what she had and is entitled to earnings for her labor in copying the books.

Moreover, according to Gotay, prosecutors' claims that the Rosses defrauded the district of $4.3 million are false since they did not take into account the expenses of producing or buying the material or taxes paid on earnings from selling the copied books.

Susan and John Ross were indicted last month on counts of mail fraud, money laundering, theft of government funds and copyright infringement and defrauding the district of $4.3 million in federal Title I funds between 2000 and 2005.

But despite the charges, Gotay maintains that not only did the Rosses have copyright permission to reproduce the material, but Davis District knew about it the whole time.

And though the books may have not have been the best quality as far as how they were put together, it's the content that matters, he said.

"Rationale stands that if you don't have the proper corporate equipment then you have to use alternate means and methods," Gotay said. "Just because the copies are not similar to those the original company would have produced that doesn't mean that the quality of information is not the same."

He said student scores are what dictate the product's quality and whether it is serving the means for which it is purchased.

"And it appears to me that (students) are doing fine," Gotay said.

Gotay said the book prices weren't inflated at all but appeared that way because prosecutors didn't take into consideration that the schools weren't just buying books but teaching kits.

"My client has charged what has always been charged for a package — it's a tutorial kit that documents how to teach and how to instruct the reading and teaching of that book," Gotay said. "It's a foot to a foot and a half wide in material and Susan put that together — she did everything."