SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – A woman who is accused of taking San Diego County contract funds for her own personal gain pleaded not guilty in court on Wednesday.
San Diego County District Attorney Summer Stephan and others from her office announced on Wednesday several charges against a woman accused of using county funds for her own personal gain.
According to the San Diego County DA’s Office, 45-year-old Amy Knox, 45, has been charged with three felony counts of misappropriating public money and three felony counts of embezzlement with the white-collar fraud allegation for great taking.
“It’s sickening that this fraudster decided to line her pockets to pay for luxury trips, cosmetic plastic surgeries with these precious, potentially lifesaving dollars,” District Attorney Summer Stephan of San Diego County said.
The DA’s office alleged Knox used at least $130,000 to pay for including two cosmetic plastic surgeries, luxury vacations, SDG&E bills for her personal homes, and more.
The money came from the over $4 million consumer protection monies awarded by San Diego County to the nonprofit organization Harm Reduction Coalition of San Diego. Stephan said on Wednesday that there were two contracts awarded to the non-profit totaling more than $5 million.
“The funds were part of the over $50 billion secured by the California Attorney General as part of nationwide settlements and bankruptcy agreements from corporations implicated in the opioid epidemic,” The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office said. “These consumer funds obtained from opioid settlements were intended to increase prevention and treatment and reduce fentanyl deaths in the County.”
This isn’t the first time that Knox has faced embezzlement allegations and charges. The San Diego County District Attorney’s Office said on Wednesday that Knox was previously convicted of stealing over $500,000 from her employer.
“This defendant had a history of stealing large amounts of money from her employer and violating their trust, yet she was still able to be in charge of millions of dollars in public funds,” DA Stephan said. “Checks and balances exist for a reason, yet there was no evidence of a background check. Even after professional county staff raised concerns, County officials awarded a second contract to Harm Reduction-SD, allowing this defendant to line her pockets with public funds.”
Knox was the Chief Operating Officer of the Harm Reduction Coalition of San Diego from July 2022 to last June. The DA’s office said she oversaw the harm reduction’s finances and was the main contact between the non-profit and the County contracting officials.
According to the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office, “Harm Reduction-SD received $4.2 million from the County’s Health and Human Services Agency, Behavioral Health Services Department. The first contract in July 2022 was for Naloxone distribution. The second contract in August 2024 was for drug checking. This service was to check for the presence of fentanyl in illegal street drugs that community members in homeless encampments planned to ingest.”
ABC 10News previously interviewed Knox for stories about the work Harm Reduction Coalition of San Diego was doing in the community with naloxone distribution.
The District Attorney’s Office said the alleged situation dates back to January 2023.
Back then, there was a report made to the CEO of the non-profit that Tara Stamos was allegedly storing Narcan under a trap in 100-degree weather.
An audit that April was done by San Diego County found “significant financial control weaknesses, including insufficient bank reconciliations and a deficient general ledger.”
Knox’s previous embezzlement convictions were later found.
ABC 10News reached out to San Diego County prior to Knox's arraignment.
A County spokesperson told us, "We take all reports of fraud, waste and abuse seriously. The County ended all contracts with the Harm Reduction Coalition in June 2025. We are committed to ensuring the ethical conduct of all employees and contractors and have controls in place, and we urge people to report a concern about an employee, contractor to our Ethics Hotline and website [sandiegocounty.gov]. Reports can be made 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The County will continue to examine and strengthen processes and reinforce accountability to ensure transparency and public trust. We are appreciative of the assistance and efforts of the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office in pursuing any case where public funds may have been misused for personal gain. The County continues to work with its community partners to support harm reduction efforts and naloxone is more available now than ever before."
ABC 10News reported that the County ended those contracts.
“When the county terminated the contract, there was no referral for criminal investigation to the DA’s Public Corruption Unit, as has been done by Board leadership in prior instances of suspected malfeasance,” DA Stephan said. Consumer protection funds are public dollars that should be safeguarded. They are the public’s funds that must be treated with transparency and accountability.”
The investigation into the latest fraud allegation was made by a report to the District Attorney’s Office.
“Knox’s fraud came to light when she began to accuse Harm Reduction’s CEO of malfeasance,” Stephan said.
Stamos said something with the non-profit’s finances caught her eye.
“I went to get a bank card, and there were suspicious charges on the thing,” Stamos said. “It made me sick to my stomach. It made me; I was confused, I felt like I didn’t know, you know, she had one excuse, but what I saw was very different. I didn’t know what to believe.”
After finding that out, Stamos said she pulled Knox off the bank account, and she went to Stephens’ office.
“We cannot, beyond a reasonable doubt, at this time know fully how much of those millions were compromised by theft,” Stephan said.
Over the course of the investigation, it was uncovered that Knox had prior embezzlement convictions that Stephan says were found on a background check after the red flags were raised.
“I did do background checks, and that didn’t show up,” Stamos said. “So, you know, there was no specific guidance on the type of background checks the County’s; I don’t know.”
If County employees are worried about potential or suspected malfeasance with public funds, they’re encouraged to report it to the District Attorney’s Office and can report it on the DA’s website: https://www.sdcda.org/preventing/publicintegrity/ or by emailing DA Public Integrity Unit at SDDAPublicIntegrity@sandiegoda.gov.
A bail review for Knox's hearing is set for February 25 at 8:30 a.m. in Department 101. A readiness hearing is set for April 1 at 8:15 a.m. in Department 1102.
