U. S. District Court Judge Douglas Harpool sentenced Amy Cherie Feagan, 34, to one year and one day in prison during an hour-long hearing this morning.
The online federal court records do not specify what her violation or violations were, but indicated she admitted to them.
Feagans was originally charged of defrauding FEMA after she claimed damages that took place at a residence she had already moved out of when the tornado hit Joplin May 22, 2011.
The crime was described in Feagans' plea agreement:
On June 3, 2011, the defendant AMY CHERIE FEAGAN (Feagan) contacted FEMA to report damage to her home and personal property, located at 2948D McClelland Blvd., Apt. D, in Joplin, and provided the information recorded on FEMA Form 009-0-1 (Application/Registration for Disaster Assistance).
On June 3, 2011, Feagan met a FEMA inspector at the tornado-damaged apartment building. There, Feagan completed an inspection, claiming to the inspector 2948D McClelland Blvd., Apt. D was her primary residence and answering his questions regarding her “residence” there.
At the conclusion of the inspection, Feagan signed FEMA Form 009-0-3 (Declaration and Release), certifying that if she intentionally made false statements or concealed information to obtain disaster assistance benefits she would be violating federal and state laws.
On the basis of Feagan’s representation that 2948D McClelland Blvd., Apt. D was her primary residence, FEMA authorized payment in the amount of $11,764.63, to replace the contents of multiple rooms of her claimed residence as well as numerous household items for herself and her children.
The funds were paid to Feagan by way of Treasury check. D. However, in truth and in fact, at the time of the disaster, Feagan did not reside at 2948D McClelland Blvd., Apt. D, in Joplin. She had previously resided at that apartment, but had moved some time earlier, and all of her belongings had been removed, and at the time of the Joplin tornado,
Feagan resided in transitional housing in Springfield, Missouri, following her release from incarceration.
A federal grand jury indicted Feagan, also known as Amy Lawrence, in December 2012.
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The two books that tell the story of the Joplin Tornado and the city's remarkable recovery- 5:41: Stories from the Joplin Tornado and Spirit of Hope: The Year After the Joplin Tornado by veteran reporters Randy Turner and John Hacker, including accounts of the tornado written by those who lived through it and the complete obituaries of those whose lives were taken May 22, 2011.
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