A Hinds County chancellor has ordered jailed former Circuit Clerk Shelly Ashley Palmertree to pay more than $800,000, but collecting could be difficult, attorney Marcie Southerland told Port City Kiwanis this week.

The county hopes to recoup at least half of the money Hinds County Chancelor ordered Palmertree to pay earlier this month, said Southerland, who has been representing the board of supervisors in suits against the former clerk.

“We have that judgment. Shelly’s in jail. Will we ever collect the judgment? That’s the question,” she said. “Like I always told the board, we have a judgment, but what is a judgment? A piece of paper. You can try to collect.”

It’s the collection process where things get tricky.

Palmertree was renting the home where she was living in Madison County that prompted her removal from office, Southerland said. Her assets are few and far between.

“We didn’t find that she had any assets to seize,” Southerland said. “She has a house in Warren County but the debt on the house is almost as much a the value.”

The home Palmertree owns at 207 Brookwood Drive was built in 1996 and is valued at $204,660, according to records from the Warren County Tax Assessor’s Office.

Pamertree improperly took the money from her civil and criminal fee accounts, Southerland said.

“Where did the money go?” asked Gil Martin, former District Attorney and Port City Kiwanis member.

“I wish I knew,” Southerland said.

Palmertree has not made any public statements about what she did with the $800,000 or cash she has been convicted of embezzling.

In March, Palmertree pleaded guilty to stealing $103,736.75 meant as restitution for crime victims, District Attorney Smith said. Southerland is now working as an assistant district attorney for Smith. Palmertree tendered a check for $20,000 restitution during her sentencing and was ordered to pay $1,250 a month to the district attorney’s office beginning May 10.

“I never saw Shelly fold or appear shaken by anything until January this year when she sat in a green and white jumpsuit right across the table from me with her attorney and we were trying to resolve some court issues. She sat there with tears rolling down her cheeks,” Southerland said.

In September, Special Judge Henry Lackey sentenced Palmertree to five years in prison for embezzling $12,000 from the civil and criminal accounts under her care. Those accounts contain fines and fees associated with civil and criminal cases.

Pamertree left office in office in May 2014 after investigators uncovered that she was living in Madison. The board appointed Greg Peltz as interim clerk, but Jan Hyland Daigre defeated Peltz in a runoff election to fill Palmertree’s unexpired term.

Daigre, who was sworn in December, will face Peltz again in November.

Elected officials are difficult to remove from office, even if corruption is suspected, Southerland said An official must have abandoned their office, been convicted of a felony or convicted of dereliction of duty.

“She was an elected official. The board of supervisors has no control over an elected official. They have no oversight over an elected official,” Southerland said.

The board did remove Palmertree from office in July 2013, but an order by Circuit Judge Isadore Patrick restored her to office. Southerland said she appealed the decision to the Mississippi Supreme Court but Palmertree vacated the office before the court ruled.

“It ended up that she moved out of the county, and was removed from office,” Southerland said. “Shelly really removed herself from office.”

Palmertree is serving a five-year sentence in a women’s satellite prison in Rankin County.

“I think she’ll be out in January or February. That’s Mississippi Department of Corrections, they are in charge of that. The state Legislator has enacted a 25 percent rule. You serve 25 percent of your time unless it’s a violent offense. I know we feel violated and it’s quite an offense, but it doesn’t rise to the level of violent offense,” Southerland said.