WEBVTT - Episode 6: The Defendant 0:00:15.356 --> 0:00:22.596 Pushkin. Hey, it's Jake. I hope you enjoyed our season 0:00:22.796 --> 0:00:26.356 The Truth about Sarah. We'll be having a live event 0:00:26.596 --> 0:00:29.916 later this year. It's going to be a conversation between 0:00:29.996 --> 0:00:33.876 me and my co host Jess McHugh, and we want 0:00:33.916 --> 0:00:37.396 to hear from you too. What questions do you have 0:00:37.556 --> 0:00:41.516 for us about this season? Send your questions to deep 0:00:41.636 --> 0:00:45.636 Cover at pushkin dot fm. That's deep Cover All one 0:00:45.716 --> 0:00:49.836 word at pushkin dot fm and stay tuned for more 0:00:49.876 --> 0:00:51.356 details on this event. 0:00:54.276 --> 0:00:56.236 Previously on deep Cover. 0:00:56.956 --> 0:01:00.236 I remember sitting on her couch and like me like 0:01:00.396 --> 0:01:03.996 telling her, asking her is this real? Is this real? 0:01:04.116 --> 0:01:05.236 Is this real? Is this real? 0:01:06.076 --> 0:01:06.276 You know? 0:01:06.956 --> 0:01:08.756 She was like no, no, no, no no. 0:01:10.236 --> 0:01:13.876 What immediately occurred to me was that as soon as 0:01:13.876 --> 0:01:18.716 I told her I cancer, even though she was telling 0:01:18.716 --> 0:01:20.156 me it was okay, in the back of her mind 0:01:20.196 --> 0:01:22.196 she was thinking, I can take advantage of this. 0:01:23.836 --> 0:01:25.716 Laying in bed in the dark, kind of like pillow talk, 0:01:26.196 --> 0:01:29.836 I asked her one more time, do you have cancer? 0:01:32.356 --> 0:01:36.036 When you lived two separate lives for so long, it 0:01:36.156 --> 0:01:38.996 feels normal, right. I had to be someone else in 0:01:38.996 --> 0:01:40.956 front of other people when I was a child, and 0:01:42.076 --> 0:01:43.156 that was normal. 0:01:49.156 --> 0:01:52.756 As the Feds built their case against Sarah. They collected 0:01:52.956 --> 0:02:00.156 all kinds of evidence, texts, emails, forged paperwork, witness interviews, 0:02:01.116 --> 0:02:04.636 and even a country ballad, I Kid you not. 0:02:06.476 --> 0:02:14.836 The sun was warm and Edinburgh boots on the ground 0:02:14.996 --> 0:02:17.036 covered in Afghander. 0:02:18.036 --> 0:02:22.236 This song, it's called Let's Go Back. It's all about 0:02:22.276 --> 0:02:25.956 this tragic war hero who's still reliving the pain of 0:02:25.996 --> 0:02:27.596 what happened in Afghanistan. 0:02:28.236 --> 0:02:34.996 Na smell the song at the sub life and now 0:02:35.036 --> 0:02:41.916 the ever again, how heavy the silence buzz Let's gold back. 0:02:42.876 --> 0:02:47.436 The inspiration for this song, the hero that it's all about. Yeah, 0:02:47.596 --> 0:02:51.396 you guessed it, Sarah Kavanaugh. She's not the one singing. 0:02:51.676 --> 0:02:55.796 That's a country music artist. Sarah collaborated with some songwriters 0:02:55.836 --> 0:02:58.796 down in Nashville to create this song as part of 0:02:58.836 --> 0:03:01.036 a program called Creative Vets. 0:03:01.756 --> 0:03:05.916 This is a coveted program with limited spots. It gives 0:03:05.996 --> 0:03:09.116 veterans an opportunity to work through their feelings and try 0:03:09.836 --> 0:03:14.316 through music. So when Sarah faked her way in, she 0:03:14.356 --> 0:03:17.676 took away the chance for some healing for actual veterans. 0:03:18.596 --> 0:03:21.316 The only reason that we even know about this song 0:03:21.836 --> 0:03:26.436 is because of federal investigators. After they searched Sarah's house. 0:03:26.796 --> 0:03:30.876 They began picking through Sarah's entire life. This is when 0:03:30.916 --> 0:03:35.236 everything began to really unravel for her. After the search, 0:03:35.676 --> 0:03:38.796 she admitted to her wife, Nicole that she'd been lying 0:03:38.836 --> 0:03:42.676 about having cancer. Nicole was like, I'm out of here. 0:03:43.276 --> 0:03:47.396 She left the next morning, and eventually she filed for divorce. 0:03:49.876 --> 0:03:53.916 Sarah's story was all over the local news. Sarah says 0:03:53.996 --> 0:03:57.676 she got death threats. She left her position at the VA, 0:03:58.196 --> 0:04:01.356 and she took a string of low wage jobs. None 0:04:01.396 --> 0:04:04.996 of them lasted very long. Once her employers caught wind 0:04:04.996 --> 0:04:07.196 of her story, Sarah says she was. 0:04:07.156 --> 0:04:12.236 Fired while she was facing a host of criminal charges, 0:04:12.556 --> 0:04:17.636 including wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and fraudulent use of 0:04:17.676 --> 0:04:23.156 military medals. It seemed as though everything was finally catching 0:04:23.236 --> 0:04:27.956 up to Sarah Cavanaugh. So many questions swirled. Would her 0:04:28.036 --> 0:04:33.076 victims confront her, would she expressed remorse, and would she 0:04:33.196 --> 0:04:51.556 be held accountable. I'm Jake Colburn and I'm Jess McHugh 0:04:52.836 --> 0:05:07.636 And this is Deep Cover Season six, The Truth About Sarah, 0:05:15.836 --> 0:05:26.956 Episode six, The Defendant. To fight the charges against her, 0:05:27.356 --> 0:05:31.676 Sarah needed a lawyer, and a good one. Enter Kensley 0:05:31.756 --> 0:05:35.356 Barrett Esquire a veteran who'd served eleven years in the 0:05:35.396 --> 0:05:40.116 Coastguard before becoming a lawyer. He goes by Ken, and 0:05:40.756 --> 0:05:43.516 one of the first things I asked Ken was whether 0:05:43.836 --> 0:05:47.596 as a veteran he had any misgivings about representing Sarah. 0:05:48.116 --> 0:05:51.356 Ken said, a lot of people were bewildered they took 0:05:51.396 --> 0:05:51.916 this case. 0:05:53.316 --> 0:05:57.676 My perspective was that I represent people who are accused 0:05:57.916 --> 0:06:05.436 of heinous crimes. You name it, murder, sex, assault, everything 0:06:05.436 --> 0:06:05.956 in between. 0:06:07.236 --> 0:06:10.316 Ken says that if he started declar lining cases due 0:06:10.596 --> 0:06:14.116 to some kind of moral aversion, as he put it, well, 0:06:14.116 --> 0:06:16.716 then what kind of criminal defense lawyer would he be. 0:06:18.236 --> 0:06:23.076 I didn't necessarily have any second thoughts about representing miss 0:06:23.196 --> 0:06:28.516 Galana and anything. It is more of intrigue as to 0:06:29.556 --> 0:06:33.196 how she ended up in the situation that she was in. 0:06:34.156 --> 0:06:38.276 When Sarah walked into his office, Ken's first question was 0:06:38.316 --> 0:06:41.716 about the financial impact of her fraud. He wanted to 0:06:41.756 --> 0:06:45.316 know how many victims were involved and what was the 0:06:45.396 --> 0:06:50.516 dollar amount. Ken says, initially Sarah downplayed the whole thing. 0:06:51.276 --> 0:06:54.196 It would take Ken some time to get a clearer picture, 0:06:54.876 --> 0:06:59.396 but eventually, as he reviewed the evidence, he understood it 0:06:59.476 --> 0:07:03.636 was not a small dollar amount. The prosecution claimed Sarah 0:07:03.676 --> 0:07:07.316 had stolen over two hundred and fifty thousand dollars worth 0:07:07.356 --> 0:07:10.716 of money and services. Ken needed to know if the 0:07:10.756 --> 0:07:16.316 allegations were true, and after reviewing the evidence, he was 0:07:16.396 --> 0:07:20.756 pretty concerned. The evidence against Sarah, he says, was strong, 0:07:21.156 --> 0:07:23.476 and he worried about the impact that it would have 0:07:23.596 --> 0:07:24.236 on a jury. 0:07:25.116 --> 0:07:28.556 This case was really like hitting the third rail, and 0:07:28.596 --> 0:07:33.996 I guess anything that involves dogs or animals and the military. 0:07:34.396 --> 0:07:38.116 Simply put, you mess with certain types of people or 0:07:38.356 --> 0:07:42.116 certain types of four legged animals, and you've instantly turned 0:07:42.156 --> 0:07:43.156 the jury against you. 0:07:43.956 --> 0:07:48.276 Those two crimes in particular, always elicit a very strong 0:07:48.436 --> 0:07:49.356 viseral reaction. 0:07:50.316 --> 0:07:52.796 All of this led Ken to believe that a trial 0:07:53.636 --> 0:07:56.916 it'd be a disaster because if she lost, she could 0:07:56.916 --> 0:07:59.436 be hit with a sentence of up to twenty four years. 0:08:00.116 --> 0:08:04.316 Seemed like the best strategy. The only strategy really was 0:08:04.396 --> 0:08:05.596 for Sarah to take a plea. 0:08:06.916 --> 0:08:08.996 It became very clear to me from my lawyer that 0:08:10.036 --> 0:08:12.556 if I wanted to kind of survive this, I was 0:08:12.596 --> 0:08:14.156 going to have to take whatever they were going to give. 0:08:15.996 --> 0:08:20.196 Ken told Sarah that even with a plea best case scenario, 0:08:20.716 --> 0:08:23.236 she was looking at a minimum two years in. 0:08:23.196 --> 0:08:31.876 Prison, and Sarah expressed concern that she couldn't do two 0:08:31.916 --> 0:08:35.756 years in prison or any jail time. And when I 0:08:35.796 --> 0:08:39.276 tried to convey to her that two years would be 0:08:39.356 --> 0:08:47.076 like a gift, her reaction was kind of like why me, 0:08:48.196 --> 0:08:52.636 Like why should I go to person for two years? 0:08:54.236 --> 0:08:58.316 And I was kind of taken aback. That was the 0:08:58.356 --> 0:09:01.636 one time in our entire time together where I was 0:09:01.636 --> 0:09:04.076 truly like, she doesn't get it. 0:09:06.036 --> 0:09:10.436 We asked Sarah about this, and she agreed with Ken's assessment. 0:09:11.356 --> 0:09:13.956 I didn't get it. No, Like I remember him saying 0:09:13.956 --> 0:09:15.756 to me once, the only thing where she could have 0:09:15.756 --> 0:09:18.756 done is kill puppies, right, And I remember him saying 0:09:18.756 --> 0:09:22.716 that and being like what and not? But now I see, yes, 0:09:23.396 --> 0:09:26.396 I can see the gravity of it and all of that. 0:09:28.156 --> 0:09:31.556 But at the time she didn't see it. And this 0:09:31.676 --> 0:09:36.276 made Ken wonder about Sarah's mindset because in that moment, 0:09:36.836 --> 0:09:42.956 he says, her thinking seemed quote detached from reality. Ken 0:09:42.996 --> 0:09:47.076 believes that Sarah was motivated by a deeply misguided need 0:09:47.396 --> 0:09:52.916 to find comfort and belonging because to him, simple greed 0:09:53.116 --> 0:09:54.316 didn't explain. 0:09:54.036 --> 0:09:57.796 Everything, although to mar believe in that it was not 0:09:57.876 --> 0:10:03.316 all financially motivated. I actually believe that maybe I'm wrong. 0:10:14.316 --> 0:10:18.116 Sarah eventually agreed to forego a trial and plead guilty. 0:10:19.076 --> 0:10:22.996 At this point, Ken says they had to pivot now 0:10:23.036 --> 0:10:26.636 it was all about minimizing jail time. To do this, 0:10:27.316 --> 0:10:31.996 they needed to establish mitigating factors, basically things that might 0:10:32.036 --> 0:10:35.156 help a judge understand why Sarah did what she did 0:10:35.796 --> 0:10:41.316 and then maybe show some mercy. Sarah told Ken that 0:10:41.436 --> 0:10:45.556 during her childhood a man had sexually abused her. This 0:10:45.636 --> 0:10:51.036 trauma had apparently fueled her drinking and depression. To Ken, 0:10:51.476 --> 0:10:55.876 these were mitigating factors that he could present to a judge. 0:10:56.036 --> 0:11:01.876 The problem, of course, was Sarah. Her credibility was well 0:11:02.316 --> 0:11:05.916 pretty much nonexistent at this point, but on this claim 0:11:06.556 --> 0:11:10.916 she had some backup. In official documents submitted to the court, 0:11:11.516 --> 0:11:15.356 Sarah's mother attested that the claims of sexual abuse were true. 0:11:16.636 --> 0:11:20.556 Ken also asked Sarah to gather letters from friends that 0:11:20.676 --> 0:11:23.476 might humanize her or speak to the good things that 0:11:23.556 --> 0:11:27.716 she had done. Sarah provided several such letters to Ken, 0:11:28.436 --> 0:11:30.276 and he submitted them to the court. 0:11:33.316 --> 0:11:36.836 Sarah's sentencing hearing took place at the US District Court 0:11:36.916 --> 0:11:41.716 in Providence, Rhode Island picture, dark wood paneling and heavy 0:11:41.756 --> 0:11:45.436 green drapes which led in just enough light to glint 0:11:45.476 --> 0:11:50.876 off the polished floors and faded brass handrails. Very nineteen thirties. 0:11:51.636 --> 0:11:55.516 You'd half expect to see some old timey gangster played 0:11:55.516 --> 0:11:58.316 by James Cagney dragged in in handcuffs. 0:11:59.276 --> 0:12:03.596 The place was packed. The gallery was filled with spectators, 0:12:04.276 --> 0:12:08.316 many of them veterans. So many people were in attendance 0:12:08.436 --> 0:12:11.436 that they actually had to set up an overflow room. 0:12:12.076 --> 0:12:15.196 The prosecution had arranged to have several of Sarah's victims 0:12:15.236 --> 0:12:17.876 be there in person so that they could read their 0:12:17.956 --> 0:12:22.316 victim impact statements, including some of the people you've heard 0:12:22.396 --> 0:12:26.756 from in this series. Dave Ainslie, the commander of the VFW, 0:12:27.276 --> 0:12:30.756 Michelle the Jim Buddy who was Sarah's primary shoe tire, 0:12:31.676 --> 0:12:36.436 and of course Justin was there too. Justin told me 0:12:36.916 --> 0:12:39.756 he was nervous about the whole thing. He'd never made 0:12:39.796 --> 0:12:43.036 a statement in court before, and he hadn't actually seen 0:12:43.156 --> 0:12:45.076 Sarah since he'd learned about her lies. 0:12:46.396 --> 0:12:49.276 Honestly, it was kind of disconcerting because when we went 0:12:49.276 --> 0:12:51.636 into the courtroom, when we went to the lobby, she 0:12:51.756 --> 0:12:54.156 came in like behind me, Like, I turned around and 0:12:54.196 --> 0:13:00.116 she was there, and that was kind of it was 0:13:00.116 --> 0:13:02.436 almost like getting hit by lightning, kind of like just 0:13:02.516 --> 0:13:04.636 kind of like this fight or flight response. 0:13:05.596 --> 0:13:09.636 Justin slowly made his way into the gallery and he 0:13:09.756 --> 0:13:13.076 found some company, some other people who were also there 0:13:13.076 --> 0:13:13.556 to speak. 0:13:14.716 --> 0:13:17.676 When I got there and found all these you know, 0:13:17.716 --> 0:13:20.156 started meeting these other people that are making statements, and 0:13:20.196 --> 0:13:23.676 they were telling me what she had done to them. 0:13:25.396 --> 0:13:28.876 And I hate to say it, but it made me 0:13:28.876 --> 0:13:31.956 feel a little better. Though I wasn't the I wasn't 0:13:31.956 --> 0:13:34.356 the only one that she had victimized so many people 0:13:35.556 --> 0:13:38.356 that that we were all in this together. 0:13:41.476 --> 0:13:44.436 The prosecutor in this case was a guy named Ron Jendron. 0:13:45.036 --> 0:13:50.476 He's an old hand for thirty years, he's been prosecuting criminals, murderers, 0:13:51.036 --> 0:13:56.756 gang members, white collar embezzlers. He's seen everything. And when 0:13:56.796 --> 0:14:00.396 he walked in, looked around and sized up the crowd, 0:14:01.276 --> 0:14:02.476 he took it as a good sign. 0:14:03.636 --> 0:14:10.236 I was quite frankly exhilarated to see that turnout. Because 0:14:11.396 --> 0:14:14.836 you toil away in your office and you don't really 0:14:14.836 --> 0:14:18.036 have any contact with people during that process. You have 0:14:18.076 --> 0:14:20.596 an idea of how it impacted people, but you don't 0:14:20.596 --> 0:14:22.716 know until you walk into a court room and you 0:14:22.756 --> 0:14:23.916 see those people there. 0:14:25.116 --> 0:14:27.876 In some ways, this case was a perfect fit for 0:14:27.956 --> 0:14:32.476 this courthouse. Providence, Rhode Island. It's actually infamous for its 0:14:32.516 --> 0:14:38.236 history of mobsters, scam artists, and corrupt public officials. Courtrooms 0:14:38.276 --> 0:14:41.476 like this one have long fed themselves on a steady 0:14:41.516 --> 0:14:46.436 diet of fraud cases. All of that being said, Ron says, 0:14:46.796 --> 0:14:50.196 this case involving Sarah it was special. 0:14:50.996 --> 0:14:53.556 I've seen a lot of stuff over thirty years, you know, 0:14:54.236 --> 0:14:58.156 some very despicable crime and things that are kind of 0:14:58.196 --> 0:15:01.676 tough to wrap your head around, and this ranks right 0:15:01.756 --> 0:15:05.036 up there in the pantheon of Rhode Island fraudsters. 0:15:06.196 --> 0:15:09.596 For Ron, the argument that Sarah should receive a lighter 0:15:09.636 --> 0:15:13.356 sentence due to her trauma just didn't hold weight. 0:15:14.596 --> 0:15:18.636 The argument that you know, my trauma caused me to 0:15:18.716 --> 0:15:22.476 do this, it doesn't fly with me. I mean, I've 0:15:22.516 --> 0:15:26.676 been doing this for an excess of thirty years, and 0:15:27.396 --> 0:15:31.396 you know, trauma and facing adversity or part of the 0:15:31.476 --> 0:15:36.436 human condition. Every defendant comes before a court having had 0:15:36.876 --> 0:15:41.476 some sort of loss or trauma in their life. Every 0:15:41.596 --> 0:15:44.756 human has such things, but not every human goes out 0:15:44.796 --> 0:15:45.636 and commits crime. 0:15:47.076 --> 0:15:51.476 Sarah's fraud was so extensive, but for Ron, the worst 0:15:51.516 --> 0:15:54.556 of it, the gut punch was what she had done 0:15:54.796 --> 0:16:01.716 to Justin. When the time came, Justin rose to his 0:16:01.796 --> 0:16:05.596 feet and faced the judge. Then he read his victim 0:16:05.636 --> 0:16:11.436 impact statement. When I interviewed Justin, I asked if he'd 0:16:11.436 --> 0:16:11.996 read it to me. 0:16:13.516 --> 0:16:16.596 My name is Justin. I'm a member of VFW Post 0:16:16.676 --> 0:16:20.596 one five two, the post were Sarah conderway into becoming 0:16:20.636 --> 0:16:24.076 the commander. I'm also the victim referred to in the 0:16:24.196 --> 0:16:28.436 charges as JH. I'm a twenty year Navy veteran. I 0:16:28.476 --> 0:16:30.796 have stage four lung cancer from exposure to the burn 0:16:30.836 --> 0:16:34.436 pits wall in combat, and Sarah Kavanaugh legally accessed and 0:16:34.476 --> 0:16:37.516 copied my medical records for her own personal gain. 0:16:39.196 --> 0:16:42.116 He went on to describe how we believe that Sarah 0:16:42.196 --> 0:16:45.396 had cancer and how he couldn't stand by and let 0:16:45.396 --> 0:16:48.556 another veteran suffer if he had the power to help, 0:16:49.356 --> 0:16:52.516 so he gave her over five thousand dollars, believing he 0:16:52.596 --> 0:16:56.196 was helping her secure private insurance to get treated at 0:16:56.276 --> 0:16:58.516 Dana Farber just like he had. 0:17:00.076 --> 0:17:02.156 She knew the suffering My family and I were going 0:17:02.196 --> 0:17:05.196 through Yet she took money from us anyway, money that 0:17:05.196 --> 0:17:07.556 could have been used to pay for my own treatment 0:17:07.876 --> 0:17:09.876 or take care of my family in our time of need. 0:17:10.596 --> 0:17:12.156 I don't know what kind of person can do that 0:17:12.276 --> 0:17:15.236 to someone with a terminal illness. I know that at 0:17:15.236 --> 0:17:18.076 some point my cancer will catch up with me. When 0:17:18.076 --> 0:17:20.916 that happens, I hope my consolation will be that she 0:17:21.116 --> 0:17:23.556 is paying to the maximum extent possible for what she 0:17:23.636 --> 0:17:27.596 did to me, my family, and countless others. The mental 0:17:27.596 --> 0:17:29.716 anguish she has caused me and my family cannot be 0:17:29.756 --> 0:17:32.276 measured in money or time in prison, but I guess 0:17:32.276 --> 0:17:32.796 it will. 0:17:32.636 --> 0:17:32.956 Have to do. 0:17:36.196 --> 0:17:42.116 When Justin was done speaking, Sarah's lawyer, Ken Barrett, gathered himself. 0:17:42.956 --> 0:17:47.316 I knew after hearing Justin speak that no matter what 0:17:47.436 --> 0:17:49.756 I said, that wasn't going to make an ounce difference 0:17:49.916 --> 0:17:55.996 to the judge why my client was deservative of mercy. 0:17:56.356 --> 0:17:59.596 Ken told me that it was more than just that. 0:18:00.636 --> 0:18:04.596 He says it wasn't until this moment that he truly 0:18:04.716 --> 0:18:09.636 understood the nature of Sarah's crime. The feeling was so acute, 0:18:09.676 --> 0:18:13.596 he says, it was almost like an out of body experience. 0:18:14.076 --> 0:18:17.116 That's how he put it. As if for a moment, 0:18:17.596 --> 0:18:21.756 he was no longer himself, no longer Sarah's lawyer. He 0:18:21.916 --> 0:18:24.636 was just an observer of another man's pain. 0:18:32.796 --> 0:18:36.516 The judge in this case was a man named John J. McConnell, JOR, 0:18:37.396 --> 0:18:40.756 and when it came time to render his sentence, Judge 0:18:40.796 --> 0:18:45.396 McConnell remarked that he too was deeply moved by Justin's story. 0:18:46.276 --> 0:18:50.516 Addressing Justin directly, he said, you just gave of what 0:18:50.556 --> 0:18:54.356 you had, and to know that that love was destroyed, 0:18:54.956 --> 0:18:58.796 and that that love was obtained through fraud, It's the 0:18:58.836 --> 0:19:04.076 worst kind of victimization. It's really awful when somebody betrays 0:19:04.196 --> 0:19:07.356 the human love that you showed. I hope in your 0:19:07.396 --> 0:19:12.476 healing you don't lose what is that compassion? With those 0:19:12.556 --> 0:19:17.156 words hanging in the air, he delivered his sentence seventy 0:19:17.276 --> 0:19:22.196 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. 0:19:23.236 --> 0:19:27.636 Sarah was also ordered to pay restitution totaling over two 0:19:27.756 --> 0:19:32.156 hundred and eighty thousand dollars. She was taken directly from 0:19:32.196 --> 0:19:34.356 the courtroom into custody. 0:19:49.076 --> 0:19:54.356 It says her one mile away on a perfect but 0:19:54.516 --> 0:19:58.596 of every day. 0:19:59.316 --> 0:20:02.036 The first time we met Sarah, she was a year 0:20:02.076 --> 0:20:04.836 and a half into her sentence that she was serving 0:20:04.836 --> 0:20:09.556 out at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury, Connecticut. 0:20:10.836 --> 0:20:16.676 That is crazy. So it's two fences of circular barbed wire. 0:20:17.076 --> 0:20:19.636 Yeah, on the bottom, middle, and top. 0:20:19.996 --> 0:20:21.716 It doesn't look so I obsecurity. 0:20:21.916 --> 0:20:22.076 Yeah. 0:20:22.076 --> 0:20:26.436 I know this place, by the way, it has something 0:20:26.476 --> 0:20:29.876 of a reputation as a prison for the stars, kind 0:20:29.876 --> 0:20:33.596 of like Club Fed. This is the facility that inspired 0:20:33.636 --> 0:20:36.836 the TV show Orange is the New Black. This is 0:20:36.876 --> 0:20:42.276 where Leona Helmsley, Lauren Hill, and Real housewife Teresa Judice 0:20:42.436 --> 0:20:46.036 all serve their time. The first time we came here, 0:20:46.196 --> 0:20:48.956 a prison official walked us up this hill to a 0:20:48.996 --> 0:20:52.796 small building for visitors, and then they just left us 0:20:53.476 --> 0:20:56.996 on our own in this windowless room with a crayon 0:20:57.076 --> 0:21:01.596 marked table. The visiting room was for family visits. There 0:21:01.636 --> 0:21:04.756 was a mural of mermaids on one wall and doll 0:21:04.796 --> 0:21:06.156 parts scattered in the corner. 0:21:07.636 --> 0:21:11.596 On that first visit, we waited for a while until 0:21:11.876 --> 0:21:15.956 finally a woman strolled in on her own. She was 0:21:16.076 --> 0:21:19.556 dressed in a gray sweatshirt and olive green pants. Her 0:21:19.556 --> 0:21:23.236 blonde hair was pulled into a low ponytail. Her entrance 0:21:23.356 --> 0:21:27.676 was so casual I thought maybe she was a prison employee, 0:21:27.916 --> 0:21:34.836 a groundskeeper perhaps, but no, this was Sarah. 0:21:34.916 --> 0:21:37.836 Okay, so yeah, maybe we always just kind of start 0:21:37.876 --> 0:21:40.076 with can you introduce yourself? 0:21:40.556 --> 0:21:44.996 Okay, I'm Sarah Kavanaugh. I currently am in prison, so 0:21:45.036 --> 0:21:47.716 i don't have a real job before this. I was 0:21:47.716 --> 0:21:52.556 a social worker for the VA in Providence, and I'm 0:21:52.716 --> 0:21:54.156 originally from Rhode Island. 0:21:55.436 --> 0:21:58.876 We talked for hours. We kept saying, you want to stop, 0:21:59.396 --> 0:22:03.756 you need a break. No, she was tireless, and through 0:22:03.796 --> 0:22:12.716 it all there was really just one question on our minds. Why. 0:22:12.876 --> 0:22:17.356 Sarah's version basically is that it all started with a 0:22:17.396 --> 0:22:18.516 big misunderstanding. 0:22:20.276 --> 0:22:23.356 I was invited to an event, and when I walked in, 0:22:23.476 --> 0:22:26.356 I realized it was only veterans, and I realized, right 0:22:26.356 --> 0:22:30.716 then and there, Okay, they think I'm a they think 0:22:30.756 --> 0:22:33.956 I'm a veteran. But I didn't deny it, right. I 0:22:33.996 --> 0:22:36.956 didn't stand up me say yes, here's where I served 0:22:36.956 --> 0:22:38.636 in all of these things that hadn't started at that 0:22:38.716 --> 0:22:43.196 point that dramatically yet. But I definitely didn't say, oh no, 0:22:43.236 --> 0:22:44.436 there's a misunderstanding. 0:22:45.076 --> 0:22:45.436 Why not. 0:22:49.476 --> 0:22:50.876 I was enjoying being around them. 0:22:52.476 --> 0:22:56.036 Sarah says that she never intended to become a celebrated 0:22:56.116 --> 0:23:01.116 war hero. But that explanation just doesn't make sense to me. 0:23:02.316 --> 0:23:04.356 You said you don't want to be the public face, 0:23:04.436 --> 0:23:08.916 but there are these photos of you, you know, in 0:23:09.236 --> 0:23:12.796 uniform next to the governor. How does that happen? 0:23:14.876 --> 0:23:18.676 Yeah, it's like spirals out of control, right. It just 0:23:18.676 --> 0:23:24.036 became this monster that I had lost control of, and 0:23:24.956 --> 0:23:26.916 I didn't know how to stop it, because I think 0:23:26.956 --> 0:23:30.396 I was always just like, get through the moment, be there, 0:23:30.636 --> 0:23:32.236 be what people want you to be, Get through it, 0:23:32.836 --> 0:23:34.356 you know, take the pictures, move on. 0:23:35.596 --> 0:23:38.996 So surely she wouldn't have done this for six years 0:23:39.036 --> 0:23:42.596 if she was just getting through it. Why do it 0:23:42.676 --> 0:23:43.476 in the first place? 0:23:44.916 --> 0:23:47.276 Did feel good to be noticed, It felt good to 0:23:47.316 --> 0:23:51.396 be the center of attention. It those aren't really great 0:23:51.396 --> 0:23:54.236 things to say about myself, But I know now that 0:23:54.276 --> 0:23:56.836 those are true, that I did enjoy those moments, not 0:23:57.036 --> 0:23:59.116 just push through them. 0:23:59.356 --> 0:24:02.396 As she tells it, the main benefit of these lies 0:24:02.716 --> 0:24:06.436 was the love and admiration she received, and the services 0:24:06.436 --> 0:24:10.716 and money were just a fringe benefit. But just for 0:24:10.756 --> 0:24:15.276 the record, Sarah started defrauding the Wounded Warrior Project in 0:24:15.356 --> 0:24:21.436 twenty sixteen, the same year she joined the VFW. If 0:24:21.436 --> 0:24:24.556 There's one part of this story that seems to really 0:24:24.596 --> 0:24:28.956 weigh on Sarah. It's her relationship with Justin. She brought 0:24:29.036 --> 0:24:33.076 him up again and again. Justin is particularly. 0:24:35.276 --> 0:24:37.436 There are like a few people who I really feel, 0:24:39.276 --> 0:24:42.196 who I really feel, were hurt more than most, and 0:24:42.236 --> 0:24:46.356 he is he is he is one of those people 0:24:48.596 --> 0:24:51.516 because he really cared for me. He really really cared 0:24:51.516 --> 0:24:51.756 for me. 0:24:53.556 --> 0:24:57.116 You can hear the emotion in her voice, the sadness. 0:24:58.196 --> 0:25:04.236 It felt really convincing. So we asked, Okay, if that's 0:25:04.236 --> 0:25:10.076 the case, why steal Justin's money and his private medical paperwork. 0:25:11.356 --> 0:25:18.996 I knew he had that diagnosis, right, he was a patient, 0:25:18.996 --> 0:25:21.316 I knew his last name. I knew he was enrolled 0:25:21.356 --> 0:25:25.556 in care. There. Those aren't excuses, that's not right, but 0:25:25.596 --> 0:25:28.276 those are facts that I knew, which made it reliable 0:25:28.276 --> 0:25:29.516 to go to that document. 0:25:30.876 --> 0:25:32.276 You say it like it sounds obvious. 0:25:34.756 --> 0:25:35.556 I think it was just. 0:25:39.236 --> 0:25:42.556 A way to make the lie more convincing. It was 0:25:42.596 --> 0:25:48.596 merely to use the correct language, right. It was so 0:25:49.076 --> 0:25:53.196 like this impersonal, detached decision that I made. 0:25:53.436 --> 0:25:58.596 We were baffled. She had been crying, visibly, upset over 0:25:58.676 --> 0:26:04.036 hurting Justin, and now she seemed really cold, annoyed. 0:26:04.156 --> 0:26:08.956 Even sitting there, I still didn't feel like she'd answered 0:26:08.956 --> 0:26:12.116 the question why did she take Justin's money in the 0:26:12.156 --> 0:26:16.396 first place? Over five thousand dollars. This part of me 0:26:16.396 --> 0:26:18.436 that feels like you accepting that money from Justin is 0:26:18.436 --> 0:26:20.876 almost like proof to yourself. The money is proof to 0:26:20.876 --> 0:26:24.716 yourself that he cares about you. 0:26:24.756 --> 0:26:24.996 No. 0:26:25.596 --> 0:26:27.396 No, him giving me that money was not proof that 0:26:27.436 --> 0:26:29.156 he cared about me. I knew he cared about me 0:26:31.076 --> 0:26:32.076 long before that money. 0:26:32.596 --> 0:26:32.756 No. 0:26:37.196 --> 0:26:41.396 Honestly, I was kind of taken aback by this. I 0:26:41.516 --> 0:26:45.596 was searching for a more heartfelt explanation. I was kind 0:26:45.596 --> 0:26:49.356 of offering it up to her, and she was just like, no. 0:26:53.596 --> 0:26:57.516 There are still moments when Sarah Voice's uncertainty about herself 0:26:58.236 --> 0:27:02.156 almost doubts her own ability to see things clearly. She'll 0:27:02.196 --> 0:27:06.196 say things like, am I seeing that correctly? And at 0:27:06.236 --> 0:27:08.836 one point I just pressed her on this. 0:27:09.796 --> 0:27:12.956 I mean, am I seeing that in a skewed way? 0:27:14.276 --> 0:27:16.356 That's interesting? Why do you ask me that? 0:27:17.916 --> 0:27:22.036 Because I think sometimes I'm not. I didn't see what 0:27:22.076 --> 0:27:26.036 I was doing wrong at the time as wrong, and 0:27:26.076 --> 0:27:28.356 I certainly did not have the insight I had now, 0:27:28.836 --> 0:27:33.316 And is my insights still not correct? Is it still 0:27:33.356 --> 0:27:34.036 not accurate? 0:27:36.476 --> 0:27:40.196 It's as though she's seeking reassurance, still wrestling with the 0:27:40.276 --> 0:27:44.676 challenge of seeing things as they truly are, which seems 0:27:44.716 --> 0:27:50.836 credible and sympathetic and also really convenient, because you can't 0:27:50.876 --> 0:27:54.556 fully hold someone accountable if they're still lost in a fog. 0:27:56.916 --> 0:28:01.516 And this raises a really thorny question, one that I've 0:28:01.516 --> 0:28:05.076 been grappling with throughout this story. How do you think 0:28:05.116 --> 0:28:08.996 about someone who's done something really terrible and seems to 0:28:08.996 --> 0:28:12.836 be struggling with their mental health. I bounced around on 0:28:12.876 --> 0:28:17.796