Former Dispatcher Pleads Guilty–Theft

A former Napa (N. Calif.) police dispatcher who told fellow dispatchers that she had cancer and fraudulently collected thousands of dollars in donations has now pleaded guilty to one county of grand theft. Dannille Vanderpool was facing 13 felony counts that could have landed her in prison for several years. Instead, the day before her preliminary hearing she accepted a plea bargain that will lead to 180 days in jail. According to the Napa County district attorney, Vanderpool spread information that she had cancer, and collected up to $50,000 from fund raising events and donations from public safety employees and citizens across the county. In fact, she has never been diagnosed with cancer, the DA said. The fraud was committed over three years. Vanderpool joined Napa PD’s comm center in Jan. 2005 and resigned last January.