AN infamous drug-taking shoplifter has been jailed for 26 weeks.
June Downing, 50, was becoming so notorious that she could not get away with it when she went thieving, her solicitor Sean Fritchley told Barnsley Magistrates' Court.
Mr Fritchley said Downing had kicked her drug habit once and become a drugs worker 'to put something back into the community'.
But he said she had lapsed back onto drugs after her elderly mother was disabled by a stroke.
Mr Fritchley said: "She's back to where she was many years ago. She needs help and sending her back to prison will not provide a cure.
"She's reaching the point when she is the first name on any list of suspects. She cannot avoid being caught when she shoplifts.
"Her offending is straightforward. She walks into shops, puts items in her bag and walks out. There is never any confrontation and she poses no danger to the public."
Jayne Ormrod, prosecuting, said Downing was 'identified by several police officers' on CCTV after one of her crimes.
Downing admitted four offences of shoplifting and was given a 26-week sentence.
