A South Florida village commissioner and former Miss Rhode Island who lied to get her way into a federal detention center so she could see her lover has been convicted, prosecutors said Thursday.
Julianna Clare Strout, 36, pleaded guilty to a federal information charging her with attempting to enter, and entering, a federal facility using fraud and false pretenses, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida.
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Following the guilty plea, Strout was sentenced to one-year probation and 50 hours of community service.
Prosecutors said the incident involving Strout happened in October 2021 at Krome Detention Center in Miami.
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At the time, the detention center had temporarily suspended social visits because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but legal visits were still permitted.
Three times, Strout entered Krome by lying to Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials about her reason for visiting, prosecutors said. Strout told officials that she worked as a paralegal for a law firm and that she needed to visit a detainee to have legal documents signed. Strout also presented officials with a letter on the law firm’s letterhead.
But Strout had never worked for the law firm and the firm had never authorized her to use its letterhead, officials said.
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Strout had only accessed the facility to see a detainee who she was romantically involved with, officials said.
During one visit where she was denied entry, Strout showed officers at Krome her North Bay Village Commissioner badge hoping they would let her in, prosecutors said.
Strout was elected to the commission in November and her term expires next month. She represented Rhode Island in the 2010 Miss America pageant.
"North Bay Village is aware of the plea agreement entered into by Commissioner Strout. The Village Charter does not require action by the Village Commission or Administration on this matter, as a felony conviction is not involved," North Bay Village officials said in a statement. "The Village has not been advised that the Governor will take action on this issue. Commissioner Strout’s term as a Commissioner concludes in November."
North Bay Village is made up of two islands in a bay north of Miami.
