Kids these days.....

I don't fault the store owner for attempting to set the kid straight, but I hope the authorities take his apology seriously and give him the benefit of the doubt of a 'lesson learned'.

Boy, 12, Faces Court Date On Charge Of Stealing Candy
Store Owner Says She Wanted To Teach Boy Lesson

POSTED: 5:47 pm EDT July 11, 2007


YORK, Maine -- A Maine candy store owner said that she recently caught a 12-year-old New Hampshire boy stealing from her, and he's now facing a court date.

Sweet Josie's Candy Shoppe owner Peggy Fennelly said that she has seen shoplifters before and is good at spotting them.

"I've been in the business 30 years," she said. "I can spot them when they come through the door."

Fennelly said that on June 27, a boy grabbed a 49-cent candy cigar and left. She called the police and pressed charges.

"At first, he said he bought it in the morning," she said. "I said, 'If that's true, you'd have already eaten it.'"

Fennelly said that the Rochester, N.H., boy tearfully admitted his guilt and even wrote a letter, saying he was "very, very sorry and (he'd) never ever do it again."

But the boy still has a court date, even though Fennelly said that she would like to call off the cops.

"I hope I did the right thing," she said. "I know I did. This young man will never steal again."

Fennelly said that she wants to not only send a message to children who are tempted to steal but also to their parents. She said the parents of the Rochester boy did step in to make sure he did the right thing.

"Watch what your kids are doing," she said. "Be attentive, give them a little love and care."
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