“Scott A. Masters, 41, is accused of shoplifting the pastry and pushing a store worker who tried to stop him. The worker was unhurt. But with that shove, his shoplifting turned into a strong-arm robbery. Masters, who appeared in court Friday, is stunned. The prosecutor shows no signs of backing down. In fact, because Masters has a prior record, he could get a sentence of 30 years to life.
“She turned to a co-worker and said, “I saw him take a doughnut. Let’s see if he pays for it.”They watched Masters as he strolled past the seven green checkout lanes and out a side door between the customer service desk and the pharmacy, passing under a giant “Country Mart Thanks You” sign. Gibbs’ co-worker followed Masters into the parking lot. The co-worker, a 54-year-old woman, demanded that Masters come inside, according to the police report. He offered to give the doughnut back. She declined and grabbed his arm. That is when Masters allegedly delivered “a backhanded punch to the chest” and took off running, police said.”That made her mad,” Gibbs recalled.The woman, who was uninjured, jumped in her car and called police as she chased Masters. He was arrested minutes later.
TheStateOf . . . 3-Strike Laws. How many of these stories are we willing to hear before we change these laws? Serial criminals are frustrating, but it costs $40,000/year to put them in prisons. Can we find a middle ground here? Maybe 6 months in a boot camp? How should society deal with repeat offenders when they cause so much chaos but cost so much to incarcerate?
Filed under: Law
