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Woman on probation accused of shoplifting

She was escorted to a Beall's by staffers from a treatment facility, where she was staying because of a drug possession charge. Now she faces more charges.

By ROBIN STEIN
Published April 22, 2006

TARPON SPRINGS - It would have been an unremarkable case of shoplifting, except that the suspect was already in custody.

About 3 p.m. Monday, Paula Louise Dupree, 38, went to the Beall's Outlet in Tarpon Square Mall from the secure residential treatment facility where she was serving probation on a Hillsborough County drug possession charge, according to police and court records.

Going on a shopping trip would not be unusual for a resident at the treatment facility, said Julie A. Reynolds, an in-house attorney for the Agency for Community Treatment Services, the Tampa nonprofit that operates the facility on Old Keystone Road.

"They go off campus," Reynolds said of ACTS residents. "For NA or AA meetings, personal appointments. ... They do their shopping and tend to their personal business."

Reynolds, who said she was unaware of this week's incident, said the degree of supervision varies by destination and circumstance.

Dupree told police she was escorted to the store by ACTS personnel. Once there, she entered the store empty-handed and headed for the women's clothing section, a store security guard told Tarpon Springs police.

She picked through the racks and emerged with three pairs of jeans, which she carried to the checkout counter, the guard said.

Then she told the clerk she wished to return them for store credit, police said. Although she did not have a proof of purchase, the clerk issued a return receipt along with a card encoded with $70.59 of credit.

Dupree returned to her mini shopping spree, but the guard approached her and asked her to follow him to the store's security office, police said. At this point, she tried to flee, wiggling out of the guard's grasp. A noisy struggle ensued.

Tarpon Springs police arrived and arrested her on charges of misdemeanor violation of probation and resisting a merchant. Because of her record, which includes other drug and theft charges, the $70.59 retail theft was elevated to a felony.

"We try to provide supervision to keep them out of trouble," Reynolds said. "Unfortunately, that is part of the process of recovery for some people."

Reynolds said privacy laws prevent her from discussing any individual case, but according to the police report, Dupree said she was just two weeks from completing her probation sentence.

Instead, she was being held without bail Friday at the Pinellas County Jail.

[Last modified April 22, 2006, 01:39:14]