A woman facing charges for falsely reporting that someone had placed a noose on her desk has been sentenced to pay thousands in fines and will enter a first-time offender program, officials said.

On Jan. 10, 2025, shortly after 7 a.m., Allentown city worker LaTarsha Brown, 42, arrived at her office on the third floor of the City Hall building in Allentown, Pennsylvania. About a half hour later, Brown called Allentown Police and told them she spotted what she believed to be a noose on her desk when she arrived at work.

As police investigated, they spoke with city employees who were on the third floor of City Hall between the time Brown left work during the afternoon of Jan. 9 and returned during the morning of Jan. 10. All of the employees, except for Brown, provided a swab for DNA testing, according to investigators. While Brown initially cooperated, she later asked that the investigation end, police said.

The noose was submitted to the Pennsylvania State Police crime lab for DNA testing on Jan. 14, 2025. On Jan. 24, 2025, the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office approved a search warrant for Brown’s DNA and a sample was obtained that same day. Brown’s swab was submitted to the Pennsylvania State Police Bethlehem Regional Crime Lab on Jan. 27 for comparison with the DNA recovered from the noose.

On March 10, the Pennsylvania State Police Forensic DNA Division issued a report indicating that they matched Brown’s DNA sample with the sample obtained from the noose, investigators said. They also said no other DNA profiles were found on the noose during the investigation.

Brown was then charged on March 24, 2025, with tampering with or fabricating physical evidence and false reports to law enforcement authorities.

Brown appeared before a judge on Thursday, Aug. 7 who is allowing Brown to participate in the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition Program for first-time offenders for the maximum two years.

The judge also ordered Brown to pay the Pennsylvania State Police $1,985 for their DNA testing efforts as well as court costs.

After Brown completes two years in the program and pays all of the fines, her criminal record is expected to be expunged, officials said.