A homeless man in central Pennsylvania who came up 43 cents short on a bottle of Mountain Dew is no longer facing a felony.
The Perry County District Attorney’s office dropped a felony retail theft charge against the man, identified as Joseph, after his case drew national attention, according to reporting from the Pennsylvania Capital Star and NPR.
Joseph said the whole thing was a misunderstanding. He told reporters he saw a sign at a gas station advertising 20 ounce Mountain Dew bottles at two for $3, so he grabbed one bottle, left $2 on the counter and walked out. What he did not know was that a single bottle actually rang up at $2.29. After tax, he was short 43 cents.
The store called police, and a Pennsylvania State Police trooper charged him with felony retail theft. According to the reports, he spent several days in jail after a judge set bail at $50,000.
Why a felony over less than a dollar? Pennsylvania law treats a third retail theft offense as a felony no matter how small the amount. Because of prior theft cases on his record, Joseph was reportedly facing up to seven years in prison.
Once the story spread, prosecutors withdrew the theft charge. A separate charge for driving with a suspended license was also reduced from a misdemeanor to a summary offense, which is about the same level as a traffic ticket, according to the reports.
The case quickly became an example in the larger conversation about how mandatory charging rules can turn a small mistake into a life changing case.
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