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Woman, 33, avoids jail in elderly theft case
Source:
Butler Eagle
Written by:
Kim Paskorz
Published:
January 18, 2012
A woman who reportedly swindled $2,033 from an elderly Cranberry Township woman narrowly avoided spending time in prison.
Butler County Judge William Shaffer on Thursday told Erin N. Crosslin, 33, that her “family obligations are paramount.” He then sentenced Crosslin to 3 to 12 months in prison, but he immediately paroled her.
As part of her parole, Crosslin will spend three months on house arrest with electronic monitoring. Additionally, Crosslin’s parole will be followed by two years of probation.
The judge noted to Crosslin that parole is a “conditional release.”
According to court records, Crosslin gained the trust of an 85-year-old woman. Crosslin, who claimed to be an employee of Allegheny County Memorial, reportedly convinced the woman to write her a check in the amount of her outstanding bill on a burial plot, according to court records.
County Assistant District Attorney Christine Studeny, who prosecuted the case, had sought jail time for Crosslin because of the victim’s age and because Crosslin had committed a similar crime in the past.
Crosslin cited a number of circumstances from her life when asking the judge to keep her out of jail.
First, Crosslin elaborated on the circumstances of her first theft conviction, which occurred in Arizona.
Then, Crosslin said, she sold items at a flea market that she believed had been given to her by her mother-in-law. But, she said, it turns out the items had been stolen by her then-husband during a robbery.
Crosslin said at that time her actions were heavily influenced by her husband’s abuse, which she did not report to authorities “due to his affiliation with the Aryan Brotherhood.”
After spending 2Z\x years in Arizona state prison on that case, Crosslin said she divorced her husband and moved to Allegheny County to help care for her father.
Crosslin, who still lives with her mother, said her father has since died. The loss, she said, traumatized her 12-year-old son and they both are in counseling. She told the judge that she feared counseling progress could be set back if she went to jail.
Additionally, she told the judge that her mother promised to destroy the dog that she got to help her son’s therapy if she went to prison.
Crosslin brought her counselors, her son, and her son’s counselor to court with her. The boy was not asked to testify, and he was removed from the courtroom for part of Crosslin’s testimony.
Crosslin, who was in a wheelchair, said she recently had back surgery that left her unable to walk.
“I sneezed, and I couldn’t feel anything below my waist,” she explained of need for the surgery.
Now on Social Security/disability, Crosslin said it was financial worries that prompted her to take the money from the Cranberry woman.
Crosslin said her car was about to be repossessed and her mother had threatened to kick her out.
“I know what I did was wrong,” Crosslin said. “I should not have done it.”
Already, Crosslin reportedly has repaid the victim the money.
Studeny told the judge the victim had planned to speak at Thursday’s hearing, but did not show up.
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