Girls Pint Out co-founder sentenced on theft, forgery charges

A founder of Girls Pint Out has been sentenced in Hamilton County after pleading guilty to a slate of felony offenses earlier this year.

Magen B. Peters, a 30-year-old Indianapolis woman who helped begin what is now a national social club with 75 chapters, was convicted of theft, forgery, fraud and check fraud in Hamilton County. Charges against her date back to last spring, and one of her crimes involved stealing nearly $25,000 from her employer, American Restoration in Fishers, and its clients.

Peters late last week was sentenced on a theft charge in Hamilton Superior Court 2, her fourth and final sentencing hearing in the past few months on four cases overall.

She was ordered to serve an executed sentence of three years, with 30 days being spent behind bars with the Indiana Department of Correction and the remainder on work release and home monitoring.

That sentence will run concurrent to an executed sentence of two years she was given on the other cases. Part of the two-year sentence includes 180 days in prison..

An emotional Peters expressed regret moments before her most recent sentence was handed down Thursday. She said she felt she was driven to commit the crimes by the pressure and financial strain she felt as a single mother.

Her legal troubles kept her away from her daughter for months. Peters said she missed the sound of her daughter playing violin and the sight of her daughter's watercolor drawings hanging on the refrigerator next to her report card.

"I would do anything to take away what I've done. I'm angry at myself for putting her in this position," Peters said between tears on Thursday. "What I've done was wrong and selfish. ... I wish I could spare my daughter and my family and those people who I took advantage of any ounce of pain."

Attempts to reach Peters and her attorney after the hearing were unsuccessful.

Officials from American Restoration declined to comment when contacted by phone.

According to court documents, Fishers Police detectives began investigating Peters in February 2014 after being contacted by American Restoration officials. They told police that an internal audit revealed a discrepancy in funds.

Officials said that when she was employed by the company from September 2010 to August 2012, Peters was responsible for obtaining incoming mail.

Court documents said that Peters opened a bank account under the guise of American Restoration. She would then receive final payments from clients and place the funds into the account without the knowledge of the company.

Once a check was deposited in the fraudulent account, Peters would delete all records from the American Restoration computer system, court documents said. Detectives were provided with bank records showing 16 stolen checks worth a total of $24,907.36.

When speaking to police, Peters admitted to taking the checks, court documents said. She added that she was confronted by American Restoration officials after the internal audit and made arrangements to pay the company back.

Court documents say that Peters paid back at least $15,000 of the stolen money.

Peters co-founded Girls Pint Out in 2010 with the goal of creating an informal club dedicated to women with a love of craft beer. What started with one chapter and a few gatherings in Indianapolis has grown to become a national organization with 75 chapters in more than 30 states.

Girls Pint Out President Amanda Wishin said Peters was asked to step down once her legal troubles were brought to light, and she did so voluntarily.

"Magen has not been involved with Girls Pint Out since mid-June 2014," Wishin said in a statement. "At that time, GPO had no formal structure, but she coordinated the chapters on a national level and maintained the website."

Wishin, who is also head of the Indianapolis chapter of Girls Pint Out, said since Peters' departure the organization has almost doubled in size. The organization officially became an Indiana nonprofit in October 2014.

Call Star reporter Justin L. Mack at (317) 444-6138. Follow him on Twitter: @justinlmack.