Former Linn County financial worker Brandi Aston, who embezzled nearly $6,000 from the county, was sentenced on Tuesday to 30 days in jail and 18 months of supervised probation.

Perhaps worse than the dollar amount of the theft was the abuse of the public’s trust, said Todd Noble, Linn County health administrator, during Aston’s sentencing hearing in Linn County Circuit Court.

“Never in the history of Linn County have we experienced an event like this. … Mrs. Aston injured the county’s longstanding reputation of integrity and service,” Noble told Judge Thomas McHill.

“Although the ship has been righted, it will take years to repair Linn County’s standing as a result of Mrs. Aston’s actions,” he added.

In May, Aston pleaded no contest to charges of first-degree theft, identity theft and first-degree official misconduct.

The crimes occurred between May 2016 and March 2018, when Aston was the financial services manager for the Linn County mental health department, said prosecutor Douglas Prince.

As part of the negotiated settlement, another count of first-degree theft and two charges of second-degree theft were dismissed. Aston, who has medical issues and no prior criminal history, will be eligible for alternative programs during her sentence, rather than simply jail time.

The Brownsville resident had been employed by the county for about five years, but was fired in 2018. She was arrested in June 2018.

Aston used a county credit card to buy remodeling supplies for her house, items for her husband’s office, food on a vacation and more, Prince said.