NICE, Calif. – The charges have been dropped against a Lake County woman initially included in a case involving an alleged embezzlement against Sho-Ka-Wah Casino in Hopland.

Gloria Nelson, 77, of Nice was among eight original defendants in the case, which involves an alleged embezzlement of more than $102,000 from the casino, as Lake County News has reported. Charges against the defendants included embezzlement and grand theft.

The lead defendant in the group, Joan Pickron, 42, of Ukiah, is alleged by officials to have used her position as a casino shift manager to create and authorize false jackpots in the casino's online accounting system, and then to pay out the money to her alleged accomplices.

Nelson's defense attorney, Keith Faulder, did not return a call seeking comment.

Assistant Mendocino County District Attorney Beth Norman said she worked with Faulder to consider the case, and she decided there wasn't sufficient evidence to proceed in prosecuting Nelson.

She said Faulder made it very clear that Nelson's defense would be that she wasn't at the casino and hadn't been involved in taking the money.

A signature on one of the evidentiary documents that was alleged to have been Nelson's had some discrepancies, which Norman said led to a reasonable doubt about Nelson's involvement.

“Our evidence was based on signatures alone,” she said.

Norman said she doesn't know who signed Nelson's name, and added, “There's no way to know who signed it.”

The remaining seven defendants are scheduled to be in court on Sept. 20, at which time they'll start to set hearing dates, said Norman.

“We've had a bit of a challenge coordinating all of the defendants, getting them all to court,” she said.

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