The greater irony in the story of aptly named
Ephonia Green, 45, (who historically gifted apparel to military brides) isn't seen in the ethereal white of liquidated, designer wedding gowns bought “for a steal” by two U.S. Marines. It is in the “green” Ms. Green stole—$5.1 million from a D.C. non-profit to keep her failing Upper Marlboro bridal boutique afloat—and the slap on the wrist she got for it: 46 months.
Forty-six months is equivalent to 1,400 days not factoring in time-served or time off for good behavior which normally halves sentences. In any case, serving the whole stretch equates to $3,642.86 per day which pales in comparison to what the lucky brides will save by purchasing Ms. Green's ill-gotten goods.
The remnant of Ms. Green's grand larceny is an inventory of 2,400 items seized by federal marshals from the now defunct Couture Miss Bridal & Formal. It is estimated that when everything is sold it will fetch between $600,000 to $800,000 to be returned to Ms. Green's wronged employer, the Association of American Medical Colleges. Assuming the higher figure, the best case scenario of recovery is only 15.7%. That's certainly no “bonanza” to the aggrieved party despite assistant program manager Jason Martinez's laughable assertion that “One of the Department of Justice’s main initiatives is victims compensation, so as often as we can compensate the victims of white collar crime, we do.”
Beyond that, this circumstance raises many disturbing questions. For instance, just how did a $56,000-a-year administrative assistant manage to embezzle $5.1 million before she was finally caught? Also, how and why did Ms. Green get such a light sentence for stealing a fortune that would have taken her 92 years to earn honestly? Lastly, though legal, should the would-be brides (among them a doctor), be portrayed by The Washington Post in such a blasé fashion as they indirectly benefit from someone else's blatant criminality?
Because the women were not allowed to try on the merchandise before purchase, their dresses may not fit. Likewise, the punishment of Ephonia Green does not “fit” her either. But make no mistake here, the person who actually got the “deal” was not among the group the giddy shoppers—some locals, others who made a special trip from afar—to save a few greenbacks.
