Doris Payne, 83-Year-Old Jewelry Thief, Back in Jail

Doris Payne, the 83-year-old jewelry thief with a criminal record that goes back to the 1950s, was back in jail Thursday.

Payne was being held at a jail in Indio on a violation of mandatory supervision, said John Hall, a spokesman for the Riverside County district attorney’s office. {snip}

Payne pleaded not guilty to the violation and was due back in court on Oct. 2 for a hearing.

The 5-foot, 6-inch, 141-pound Payne made headlines last year when she was arrested for swiping a $22,500 diamond-and-white-gold ring from El Paseo Jewelers in a Palm Desert shopping center.

Doris Payne

In April, Payne was sentenced to four years in custody–two in county jail, two under mandatory supervision–after pleading guilty to one felony count each of burglary and grand theft, Hall said.

{snip}

Deputy Armando Munoz, a spokesman for the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, said Payne was released early from one of its jails on July 8 due to overcrowding.

{snip}