Posted on 05/07/2005 7:45:00 PM PDT by kcvl
By MARK DAVIS The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Published on: 05/08/05
Excerpt...
Her travels may be over, but Wilbanks' troubles may have just begun. Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter said he was examining evidence for a possible charge of making false statements to a government agency.
Sartain believes that's not necessary.
"She is deeply regretful of the pain she caused her family, her fiancé, her friends and the community who rallied to her aid," the lawyer said Wednesday. "I believe Jennifer committed no crime."
Arrests for shoplifting
Sartain, a former Hall County district attorney, knows her client. Court records show that Wilbanks was arrested three times in that county on shoplifting charges from 1996 to 1998.
In 1996, as district attorney, Sartain prosecuted Wilbanks for allegedly shoplifting $1,740 in merchandise from a Gainesville mall, court records show. Sartain dropped the felony charge after Wilbanks, then 24, completed a pretrial diversion program, the records show. Wilbanks performed 75 hours of community service and paid restitution, according to court records.
Months before that felony arrest, police had charged Wilbanks with misdemeanor shoplifting for allegedly taking $37.05 in merchandise from a Gainesville Wal-Mart. Court records show that officials dismissed the case after Wilbanks completed "Project Turnabout," a six-week counseling program for shoplifters.
She was arrested again, city court records show, in April 1998, when Wilbanks, then 25, was charged with shoplifting $98 worth of merchandise from a store. She pleaded guilty and served two weekends in jail. A judge also sentenced her to probation, a $400 fine and 50 hours of community service.
FYI...
I am Jack's Total Lack of Surprise.
This story just gets stranger and stranger. Heard or read somewhere that she was upset because her fiance wouldn't have sex before they married. It was five years since she had sex.
Runaway Bride's Past: Shoplifting Arrests, Jail
The Gainesville lawyer hired to represent runaway bride-to-be Jennifer Wilbanks once prosecuted Wilbanks for felony shoplifting, court records seen by the Atlanta Journal Constitution show.
Lydia Sartain was Hall County district attorney in 1996 when Wilbanks was arrested for allegedly stealing $1,740 in merchandise from a Gainesville mall. AJC.com reports that Sartain dropped the felony charge after Wilbanks completed a pretrial diversion program that included 75 hours of community service.
The newspaper said Wilbanks was arrested two other times for shoplifting -- once before the felony arrest and once in 1998. She pleaded guilty to stealing $98 worth of merchandise in the 1998 incident and spent two weekends in jail.
Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter is considering whether to charge Wilbanks for falsely reporting a crime when she blamed her pre-wedding disappearance on a kidnapping.
Duluth's City Council met Saturday to consider a civil case against Wilbanks to recover the thousands of dollars spent in the search for her.
WSBTV.com
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/4463061/detail.html
klepto mania!!!! Sean, call your office.
The wide-eyed broad is NUTS!
I hope that boy runs like hell....
Semper Fi
I'm starting to wonder if this woman is a potential Andrea Yates in the making. I hope her family and husband pay very close attention to her in coming years.
Sounds like the girl has 'issues'.
I think she is a nutcase.
If this Mason dude marries this wack-a-loon, then he deserves all the pain and suffering that he will surely endure.
No sex in five years -- living with the Dude....
No wonder she looks like a deer caught in the headlights..
Now, I think that perhaps her "intended" is not interested in girls....
Semper Fi
And if you believe that, boy do I have some bridge stock to sell you.
Damaged goods. No amount of love is going to change things with her. The man needs to move on.
What makes me so darn angry over this mess is that her family and friends pretended that Jennifer was such a clean cut girl and would never do anything like runaway. All the while knowing she was a klepto and definitely had "issues"!
Y'all are gonna LOVE this - she's done time for shoplifting!
That'll make you crazy.
That's why we keep seeing all those nuns in the paper for doing insane things.
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