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Peekskill resident Delilah Torres has been sentenced to five years probation after being found guilty of a felony count of first-degree offering a false instrument for filing after she falsely portrayed herself as a lawyer in Pleasantville Village Court.
Westchester County District Attorney, Jr. Scarpino said that Torres first appeared in court in Pleasantville on June 26 last year, when she identified herself as the attorney for her client in a civil matter.
She went on to receive instructions from the court clerk about how to move forward, and Torres went on to fax several documents to the court, which resulted in the matter being scheduled for a hearing the following day.
Torres was back in court on June 27, again falsely claiming to be an attorney for the client. During that appearance, Torres provided a Notice of Appearance and Notice of Motion to the court, claiming to be an active attorney on both forms. The matter was later adjourned to June 29.
According to Scarpino, when questioned by the court on her credentials, Torres claimed she graduated from Columbia Law School May 18 last year, but had not yet taken the bar exam.
She was ordered to return to court July 3 with proof she was admitted to practice and that she attended Columbia Law School. She never made a return appearance.
Records from the Office of Court Administration, the New York State Board of Law Examiners, and Columbia University confirmed Torres never attended or graduated from Columbia Law School, never took the New York State Bar Exam, and had never been admitted to practice in the State of New York.
Torres initially pleaded not guilty to the charges against her. She had been held in Westchester County Jail in lieu of $15,000 cash bail or bond before her sentencing. She had faced a maximum of four years in state prison.
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