In 2000, Guy Frank was arrested for attempting to remove two shirts from Saks Fifth Avenue in New Orleans. The value of the shirts was such that under today’s laws this would have been a misdemeanor theft charge. At the time, however, it was a felony. Mr. Frank pled guilty in an attempt to take responsibility for his behavior. However prosecutors filed a habitual offender bill against him, based on prior theft and drug possession convictions, and the judge sentenced him to 23 years in prison.
Unfortunately, when Innocence & Justice Louisiana learned about his case in 2021, he had served nearly all of that time. Based on Innocence & Justice Louisiana’s advocacy, the district attorney agreed that Mr. Frank should be immediately re-sentenced and released.
