ROCKINGHAM — A defendant is accused of using a forged doctor’s note to excuse his absence from a court appearance.
According to court documents, 29-year-old Douglas Lee Clark, of Rockingham, was scheduled to appear in court Aug. 7 on charges of breaking and entering a motor vehicle and attempted felony larceny.
An arrest warrant dated July 22 alleges that Clark broke into a Ford F-350 owned by MasTec earlier that day and tried to steal copper wire.
Clark was arrested July 26 by the Rockingham Police Department and released July 28 on a $5,000 secured bond, with a court date set for Aug. 7.
However, records indicate Clark was not present when his case was called and an order was issued for his arrest.
According to court documents, Clark showed up around 4 p.m. and presented a note to the clerk of superior court. The note purportedly requested that Clark be excused from work due to “illness” from Aug. 7-10 with the name Emily Phillips and a signature.
Documents indicate that Phillips is a medical provider with FirstHealth Family Medicine, however, the signature was not hers and she reportedly knew nothing about the note.
FirstHealth Family Medicine did not make the note, which “contains multiple fonts, sizes, and appears to have been edited together,” according to court documents.
Clark was arrested and he is being held on a $10,000 secured bond. He has a show cause hearing scheduled for Aug. 14, and his next court appearance on the original charges is Sept. 11.
Records with the N.C. Department of Adult Correction show Clark was convicted in May on four counts of misdemeanor larceny and given a suspended sentence.
His only other prior conviction was for a single count of misdemeanor larceny in 2014.
All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
