Dorothy Smith, Test-Fixing, Louisiana 2022

Coast Guard Test-Fixing Scheme Exposed

New Orleans, LA – U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced the guilty pleas of two former U.S. Coast Guard employees in a test score-fixing scheme.

Dorothy Smith, 60, and Beverly McCrary, 65, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States.

Mandatory Facts:

Defendant: Dorothy Smith, Beverly McCrary

Criminal Charges: Conspiracy to defraud the United States

City and State: New Orleans, LA

Date: February 24, 2022

Sentence: Sentencing for each defendant is scheduled for April 14, 2022. Maximum penalties: 5 years imprisonment, $250,000 fine, 3 years supervised release, and $100 mandatory special assessment fee.

Background:

Smith and McCrary were employed as credentialing specialists at a Coast Guard exam center in Mandeville, Louisiana. Their positions authorized them to enter scores for examinations that merchant mariners were legally required to pass in order to obtain licenses to serve in various positions on vessels.

Smith accepted bribes to fix exam scores, while McCrary acted as an intermediary in the scheme. Smith would create Coast Guard records and data entries to make it appear that mariners had appeared and tested, and then send emails to a Coast Guard office falsely stating that the mariners had passed the examinations and should receive the desired endorsements.

The scheme caused more than 50 mariners to receive false scores, with some mariners obtaining false scores on multiple occasions. Each falsely-reported examination resulted in the issuance of an unearned license, with almost all of the licenses being officer-level.

Smith and McCrary will be sentenced on April 14, 2022. The case is a reminder of the importance of integrity in our nation’s institutions and the consequences of betraying that trust.

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