Serial Carlisle shoplifters face jail as they run out of chances

Yahoo

2 days ago

JAIL terms have been handed to two prolific shoplifters from Carlisle who refused to mend their ways - despite being given a chance to reform last month.
Danielle Nicholson, 35, admitted five thefts and a police assault, which involved her kicking an officer as she and her co-defendant Matthew Thompson, 31, were being detained.
He admitted eight thefts.
The latest appearance at Carlisle's Rickergate court came just weeks after defence lawyers told magistrates the defendants, of Mayfield Avenue, Carlisle, can be rehabilitated.
The targets for crime spree, which happened over several weeks, included:
Cranstons at Orton Grange, where the defendants twice stole meat, with a total value in excess of 200 on days in June and July;
TK Maxx in Carlisle city centre, where they stole two handbags on August 1.
The Co-op store in Central Avenue, Harraby.
Booths supermarket in Penrith, where they stole booze worth £460 on July 1.
Thompson admitted taking a tips jar from the Central Café in Harraby on June 19. It contained around £200.
He also stole from a Spar Shop on Petteril Bank Road, Carlisle, and the One Stop store in Fusehill Street, Carlisle.
Anthony Wilson, for Nicholson, said the thefts had been 'joint enterprise' offending but it was Thompson who was the 'main player.'
Nicholson had just 'gone along with it,' he said.
READ MORE: Prolific Carlisle shoplifters given chance to mend their ways
Referring to the police assault, Mr Wilson said Nicholson felt that the officer who arrested her was 'aggressive' as he put her into handcuffs. 'She was being taken to the van and Mr Thompson was being pava sprayed,' said the lawyer.
'She took the opportunity to lash out and kick him [the officer] on the legs, thankfully causing no injury.'
The defendant was concerned that a jail term would lead to the loss of her accommodation, said Mr Wilson. He added that the background for Nicholson included the recent death of a family member.
The lawyer said: 'Her son, aged 19, has just come back into his life and she wants to be a better role model for him. She wants to stop offending.'
Mr Wilson added that Nicholson had a lot of problems in her life and wants to work with the Probation Service to get the help she needs.
Duncan Campbell, for Thompson, said the defendant had suffered from depression, a problem he had sought in the past to address by using cocaine.
'He dealt with that himself,' said the lawyer.
'He no longer takes it. But unfortunately, when everybody who has had the habit of using cocaine has to pay for that and he was under pressure to pay off those debts.
"Hence the thefts.
'He needed to pay off people who were otherwise threatening to cause him harm. It's a sad story in that respect.'
Nicholson was jailed for ten weeks and Thompson for 12 weeks. In both cases, the sentences included previously suspended jail terms. Both were told to pay compensation to the shops they stole from.