Make It Make Sense: Thieves’ Attorneys Ask For Lighter Charge Since Stolen Items Were ‘On Sale’

The jury didn't buy it and the men were given jail sentences for stealing

Two Colorado thieves who were caught stealing from a Kohl’s department store were convicted of their crime, but their attorneys asked the court to consider reducing the charges because the items they lifted were “on sale.”

The District Attorney’s Office 18 Judicial District in Colorado announced the conviction on Dec. 12. The two men, Michael Green, 50, and Byron Bolden, 37, were formally sentenced after they were convicted of retail theft at a Kohl’s department store in Parker. Surveillance video captured the pair when police officers and loss prevention personnel identified the men.

After an investigation, it was discovered that the two men allegedly took part in other robberies at the store. Since they stole many brand-name items as well as high-end KitchenAid appliances, they were dubbed the “KitchenAid Mixer Crew.”

The two men pled not guilty, and during the trial their defense attorneys suggested to the jury that they face a lesser misdemeanor charge due to some of the stolen items being “on sale.” Colorado law states that stolen items listed under $2,000 classifies as a misdemeanor offense. Theft amounting to between $2,000 and $5,000 comes in as a Class 6 felony. The total of Green and Bolden’s stolen items, at face value, was $2,094.98. Hence, the attorneys asked for a lighter charge.

The jury didn’t buy it.

“Just because an item is ‘on sale’ doesn’t mean it’s free to steal, and these defendants now get to think about this lesson in jail and prison,” District Attorney John Kellner said in a written statement. “Retailers in our community are fed up with theft, and my office will actively prosecute these offenders.”

Green was given a sentence of 15 months in prison. He is currently in the Department of Corrections on a separate conviction. Bolden was sentenced to three months in jail with credit for time served as a condition of 18 months of probation.