Convicted Embezzler Finds Way Back Onto Calif. State Payroll

Turns out, nobody asked

Two questions removed from most civil service job applications three years ago allowed an embezzler to return to state government work after she went to prison for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from another agency.

Officials at the High-Speed Rail Authority eventually found out about Carey Renee Moore's sensational criminal past, fired her for lying on her application and tried to keep her from receiving unemployment checks. But Moore appealed and won the benefits, noting that she didn't lie about her past – no one ever asked her about it.

Moore told the judge hearing her unemployment appeal that the rail agency fired her to avoid embarrassment for the controversial multibillion-dollar project that has become one of Gov. Jerry Brown's signature projects.