Rochester Woman Sentenced For Stealing Her Mother’s Funds

A Rochester woman has been sentenced to a bit over two months in jail and 10-years on probation for stealing thousands of dollars from her ailing mother.

Judge Robert Birnbaum also ordered 47-year-old Kathleen Studnicka to pay over $13,000 in restitution. She earlier pleaded guilty to four felony charges, including two counts of financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult and two tax-related offenses.Prosecutors say Studnicka used her Power of Attorney to take almost $23,000 dollars from her mother’s accounts in 2011 while the woman was in a nursing home.

Last month, Studnicka was given a one-year prison sentence for violating the terms of her probation for a 2009 fraud conviction in Waseca County by not making payments toward the over $100,000 dollars she owed in fines and restitution.