From jail inmate to social butterfly

The trespassing charge against Mary Ryan Stankus, 91, has been dropped. She's doing well at an assisted living facility.

By WILLIAM R. LEVESQUE

© St. Petersburg Times, published January 11, 2001

Nearly two weeks after Mary Ryan Stankus was released from jail on a misdemeanor charge, things are looking up for the 91-year-old St. Pete Beach resident.

For one thing, Pinellas prosecutors recently dropped the trespassing charge St. Pete Beach police originally lodged against her. Police there arrested her after Stankus twice failed to appear in court, possibly because of short-term memory loss, her attorney said.

And Stankus, now living at a Pinellas Park assisted living facility called Park Place, is getting along exceptionally well, undisturbed by her recent ordeal, said Pinellas-Pasco Public Defender Bob Dillinger.

"She's as happy as can be," Dillinger said Wednesday. "She's playing cards and socializing and just having a great time. They say she's a social butterfly."

Stankus spent two nights in the Pinellas County Jail ending Dec. 29 after St. Pete Beach police arrested her.

Police said they had no choice but to arrest her on a warrant for failing to appear in court. But the move outraged Stankus' family and Dillinger, whose office represents her.

Stankus had been caught shoplifting at a St. Pete Beach Publix five times, police said. The store refused to press charges but asked that she be given a trespass warning.

When she returned to the store and was caught shoplifting again, police said, trespassing charges were filed and a court appearance set, which Dillinger said she apparently forgot about.

Prosecutors responsible for dropping the charge could not be reached for comment.

Dillinger said the woman, with her memory problems, never should have been living alone. Stankus' granddaughter in Pennsylvania apparently was unaware of those problems. The granddaughter had planned to move her to an assisted living facility up north after her arrest.

"But she's having such a good time where she is," Dillinger said, "the granddaughter's thinking about keeping her in Pinellas County."

PREVIOUS COVERAGE:

Misdemeanor leads to jailing of 91-year-old

91-year-old released from jail

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