Earnest Tilley was under the influence of methamphetamine -- a bad idea in general, but particularly bad for someone (like him) diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia -- when he entered a Tractor Supply store, took $200 worth of items without paying for them, and pushed a female employee to the wall when she attempted to stop him from leaving. He gets arrested and pleads no contest to robbery.
That's a fairly standard fact pattern, particularly these days. There's a lot of press about the lack of any real punishment for low-value thefts from retail establishments.
What sentence do you think Tilley receives?
Answer: Six years in prison.
Now, he's got a prior strike, so his sentence was doubled. Still. That's not an insubstantial period of incarceration. Particularly for someone (as here) with obvious mental health problems.
