More on the Stolen Produce Duo

[donco6]

Big news here in Colorado, which is kinda pathetic, but here it is:


http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/news_columnists/article/0,1299,DRMN_86_4971594,00.html

Johnson: Something's rotten in story of 'stolen' trash

"Hell yes, we were mad," Jonathon Hieb said on Tuesday. "That's all true. I didn't want to be back there that night. In anger, I said to prosecute them to the fullest."

Yet when he and other workers canvassed the store and saw nothing was missing, he says he let Kerry St. James know immediately. "They had just taken the rotted produce we normally give to the pig farmers to feed their pigs," he said.

His mistake, he says, was not letting the cops know. "I figured this would go away, that they would get community service and that would be it. When I heard what those two kids were charged with - felonies! - I figured it was just a squeeze play.

[BanzaiBonnie]

1. Was there a trial involved?

How can they have been convicted of a felony without a trial?

[donco6]

2. Here's more - they pled guilty to lesser charge.

Steamboat Springs — One of the owners of a fresh produce store said Saturday that it is absurd that two men are in jail for taking spoiled fruit and vegetables from the store’s trash area.

On Wednesday, Giles Char­lé, 24, of Somersworth, N.H., and David Siller, 27, of Wayne, Pa., pleaded guilty to misdemeanor trespass and were sentenced to spend six months in Routt County Jail and pay $15 in restitution to Sweet Pea Produce. The men were on their way to the Rainbow Family of Living Light Gathering in North Routt County when they were arrested June 26.

The men admitted that they jumped a fence and took fruits and vegetables from the garbage area at Sweet Pea. They originally were charged with felony second-degree burglary and misdemeanor theft. They accepted the plea agreement offered by Assistant District Attorney Kerry St. James, they said, because they did not want to risk being convicted of a felony.

http://www2.steamboatpilot.com/news/2006/sep/02/sweet_pea_owners_we_didnt_want/