By THOMAS W. KRAUSE
The Tampa Tribune

TAMPA - The woman sentenced for stealing from one of the city’s top First Amendment lawyers is supposed to turn herself in to jail tonight.

The woman, Dawn Harrison, is supposed to turn herself in after being convicted of stealing from Luke Lirot, the noted First Amendment attorney, who had no idea he was in financial trouble until a mailman knocked on his door holding a letter from the Internal Revenue Service.

If Lirot didn’t take care of several outstanding financial accounts, the letter said, a lien would be placed against his house.

“When we finally figured out the depth of the deceit and the betrayal,” Lirot said in court earlier this week, “we were just - we were crushed.”

Harrison, a secretary in Lirot’s law office for nearly eight years, had stolen somewhere between $89,000 and $120,000 from Lirot and the law firm.

On Wednesday, Circuit Judge Debra Behnke sentenced Harrison to 60 days in the county jail followed by 15 years on probation.

Harrison must start making restitution payments to Lirot and his wife, but the chances of her getting out from under the debt are slim. She said she can pay about $150 per month on her current salary of about $20,000 per year. To pay off the $100,000 debt - agreed upon by all the parties - she would have to make payments for more than 55 years.

According to a court transcript, Harrison had been trusted with all of Lirot’s financials. She had access to checking accounts and credit cards. She stole from Lirot for about a year, he said.

“Ms. Harrison, toward the end of her career, felt that being honest and trustworthy wasn’t an important characteristic to exhibit,” Lirot said in court.

Harrison gave herself unauthorized raises and paid herself for unauthorized overtime, Lirot said. She used his credit card to buy airline tickets for friends and family and bought $120 sneakers.

Lirot has handled First Amendment cases in the Bay area arguing freedom of expression for the owners of Web sites, adult-themed nightclubs, exotic dancers and prostitutes. For years, he has worked for and represented perennial political candidate and Mons Venus-owner Joe Render.

In court, Lirot said he has benefited from Judge Behnke’s compassion in several cases and knows she is fair. Still, he said in court, he wanted her to understand exactly how badly he was damaged by Harrison’s actions.

Lirot said he had to work seven-day weeks to pay off debts incurred by Harrison and his credit is ruined.

“Needless to say, I wish I’d kept a better eye on things,” he said. “You know, if she needed money and wanted to borrow money, I probably would have let her borrow it.”

Prosecutors said Harrison used the money to buy wrestling tickets and a Lexus for her boyfriend.

When Harrison’s theft was discovered, Lirot told the judge, Harrison apologized and promised to pay back the money. Then, she left town.
“She scooted and we couldn’t find her,” Lirot said.

Harrison was arrested in Lake County in February. Lirot said in court that she was found because her son was pulled over for a traffic violation.

Harrison’s lawyer, Brian Carnish, told the judge that Harrison no longer has any of the items she bought with Lirot’s money.

“Apparently she was with a boyfriend at the time who she’s no longer with,” Carnish said, according to court transcripts. “Sounds like he ran off with a lot of it.”

Reporter Thomas W. Krause can be reached at (813)259-7698 or tkrause@tampatrib.com.

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