Corrina Gould Convicted of Defrauding Alameda County, in 1997, Ordered to Pay $5,275

On April 17, 1997, Corrina Gould was convicted in Alameda County Criminal Court, for:

willfully and knowingly, with the intent to deceive, by means of false statement or representation, or by failing to disclose a material fact, or by impersonation or other fraudulent device, obtained or retained [more than $950] aid under the provisions of this division for himself or herself or for a child not in fact entitled thereto.”
California Welfare & Institutions Code Sec. 10980(C)2

Gould was sentenced to jail time, and fined.

There was also a civil judgment against Corrina Gould for the amount of $5,275 dollars, which was entered by her own confession:

I hereby confess… [d]efendant fraudulently received public assistance benefits from Alameda County that [she] was not entitled to by submitting false written statements under penalty of perjury.”
Corrina Gould, “Statement and Declaration for Confession of Judgment”, Alameda County Civil Case Number 1997002685

It is unclear how long Gould spent in jail.

The case file was destroyed pursuant to the law which governs case file retention. (Information about the offense, and Gould’s subsequent conviction is still available in the Alameda County Superior Court Criminal Index.)

Alameda County Superior Court Criminal Records Search (SEP-21-2021) for “Corrina Gould”

But the Welfare & Institutions Code statute Corrina was sentenced by enumerates terms of imprisonment as 16 months, 2 years, and 3 years, or “a fine of not more than $5,000,” or both. The Criminal Index indicated Corrina Gould’s sentence as “Sentence: 001 jail and fined.”

Corrina Gould was also sentenced to 36 months of probation for defrauding Alameda County Social Services. The exact dollar amount Gould illegally obtained is unknown.

At the time of Corrina Gould’s conviction for Welfare Fraud, she was working at the American Indian Family Healing Center, in Oakland, California. She would later work for the American Indian Child Resource Center, as a Title VII Coordinator. It’s unclear if either organization knew of Corrina Gould’s conviction for this type of fraud; or, whether or not Gould was involved in filing claims, and/or applying for benefits on behalf their clients.

Today, Corrina Gould is the spokesperson for Sogorea Te Land Trust, and Confederated Villages of the Lisjan, INC. She was also a co-founder of Indian People Organizing for Change.