BRENTWOOD — A Superior Court judge yesterday reduced the bail of a woman who is accused of providing licenses to illegal immigrants in exchange for bribes while she worked at the Department of Motor Vehicles in Salem.
Judge Tina Nadeau cut Donna Rockholt's bail from $300,000 cash only, which she called "unconstitutionally excessive," to $100,000 cash or surety.
The reduction comes days after Judge Kenneth McHugh reduced the bail of a man prosecutors have said was the central figure of the bribery ring. Adalberto Medina had his bail reduced from $500,000 cash only to $125,000 cash or surety.
Assistant Attorney General Michael Lewis said in court yesterday that Rockholt had given fraudulent identification to at least 20 people. He said she could be the "most corrupt public servant that we have ever investigated."
But her attorney, Richard Lehmann, said Rockholt had no prior criminal record, and no longer held the job that had allowed her to allegedly commit the crimes with which she was charged.
"The means have been removed from my client because she doesn't have her job," he said.
Lehmann said Rockholt had close community ties in Manchester, and pointed to two rows of family members in the courtroom — including her elderly parents, her husband, and her sister, with whom she shares a duplex.
He said they all live within five miles of one another in Manchester.
"This is what she's got. This is her family," Lehmann said. "This is her anchor. ... If she were to leave, she would be leaving her entire life behind."
But Lewis said her family had not served as an anchor before. He said in addition to handing out the fraudulent IDs, which prosecutors have said she did for $500 apiece, she also was dealing and obtaining drugs, including cocaine, on "an almost daily basis."
He said Rockholt also gave out licenses to drive vehicles containing hazardous waste nine times to drivers who would not have met the necessary qualifications.
"She's stolen from the state. When she was working at the DMV, she would pocket fees," he said.
He said she didn't have a prior criminal record — but that all these crimes were occurring at once.
"The presentation of this vanilla-flavored lifestyle is a very, very distorted presentation," Lewis said.
Lehmann said the state had argued she could be a flight risk because her job enabled her to make fraudulent identification.
He said investigators had watched her for weeks and so far offered no proof she had done so.
The state also took her passport in their search of her home.
Lehmann asked Nadeau for $10,000 cash or surety bail — which he said his client could make.
He said she hadn't been home since she was awoken at 5 a.m. for a search of her home in May.
"Since then, her entire contact with all these people has been through glass," he said.
Lewis argued that Rockholt could reach out to her criminal contacts for help if she were released, and said she kept dangerous company while she was part of the bribery ring.
"She has been dealing with dangerous people and criminals for a long period of time," he said.
The illegal immigrants were allegedly led to Rockholt by Medina, who prosecutors have said took thousands of dollars from each of them to help them get IDs bearing their pictures, but somebody else's identity.
Medina also is accused of bribing New Hampshire State Police Trooper Fred Stamatatos of Pelham for vehicle inspection stickers.
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