Lawyer in Suits Against Springs Arrested in Nassau

An attorney representing one current and one former Springs School employee in lawsuits against the school district has been charged with grand larceny after Nassau County police say he misused $198,000 in settlement monies that had been awarded to clients.

Steven A. Morelli, who lives in Manhattan and whose practice is in Garden City, was scheduled for arraignment on Tuesday at First District Court in Hempstead on one count of second-degree grand larceny and three counts of third-degree grand larceny.

According to Nassau County police, Mr. Morelli "retained the monies for an unreasonable amount of time and used the settlement funds for other than its intended purpose" between February and August of 2015. Police said three people who said they were owed money from Mr. Morelli have since received it. A fourth person is said to be owed more than $40,000.

Mr. Morelli turned himself in, and was placed under arrested by detectives from Nassau's Crimes Against Property squad Tuesday morning. No one was available at his Garden City office to comment on Tuesday afternoon.

According to his firm's website, Mr. Morelli was previously with the law firm Leeds, Morelli & Brown, which represented other clients in East End cases over the years.

Mr. Morelli recently was hired to represent Fran Silipo, the former Springs School District clerk, who has claimed wrongful termination and a hostile work environment, and Liz Tatiana Tucci, a former Springs School clerk who has claimed racial discrimination. Ms. Silipo said she could not comment and Ms. Tucci could not immediately be reached for comment on Tuesday.