Former Employee of Defunct Goshen Park District Ordered to Pay Restitution of $2,552 Following Misdemeanor Guilty Plea

Press Release • Ohio Auditor of State

COLUMBUS - A former employee of the Goshen Park District was ordered to pay $2,552 in restitution after she admitted to a single criminal count related to checks that were cashed after the district was dissolved.

Michelle Lynn Dinwiddie also received a 30-day suspended jail sentence and was fined $150 after she pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charge of dereliction of duty in Clermont County Municipal Court.

The Auditor of State's Special Investigations Unit (SIU) launched an investigation after an audit identified several checks payable to cash that were signed by Dinwiddie, one of several people with access to the park district account.

SIU determined that Dinwiddie had cashed the checks, totaling $2,300, and retained the funds rather than using them for district expenses.

Dinwiddie was charged in Clermont County Municipal Court in August 2026. She pleaded guilty and was sentenced on Tuesday. The final restitution order included $252 in audit costs.

Since 2019, the Special Investigations Unit has assisted in 172 convictions resulting in more than $17.9 million in restitution (see Map of SIU Convictions since January 2019). The team receives hundreds of tips of suspected fraud annually. Tips can be submitted anonymously online or via SIU's fraud hotline at 866-FRAUD-OH (866-372-8364).

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The Auditor of State's Office, one of five independently elected statewide offices in Ohio, is responsible for auditing more than 5,900 state and local government agencies. Under the direction of Auditor Keith Faber, the office also provides financial services to local governments, investigates and prevents fraud in public agencies, and promotes transparency in government.

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