Criminal Justice?

Last month, the Idaho Statesman ran this piece, which I started to comment on at the time: North Idaho woman faces hard time over spilt soda.

The U.S. attorney's office is making a federal case out of a spilt soda.

The Bush administration's top attorney in Idaho is bringing charges against a North Idaho woman for refusing to pay for a Diet Coke and then pouring it out on a counter at a cafeteria at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Boise.

Natalie Walters, now facing two counts that each carry a maximum sentence of six months in federal prison, thinks the case is a waste of taxpayer money and plans to fight the charges.

You know there was a voice in the back of her head saying "Gitmo" once she heard "federal prison." And, yeah, the case is a waste of taxpayer money--but since when has that stopped this administration (or practically any other administration) from doing something?

U.S. Attorney Tom Moss's office wouldn't comment on the case until after Walters' arraignment, set for Oct. 8.

Roger Banks, listed on the court record as the investigating agent with the Department of Veterans Affairs, did not return the Statesman's phone call Wednesday.

Walters, though, told her side of the story:

The 39-year-old North Idaho resident periodically drives her father, a disabled Vietnam veteran, to Boise's VA Medical Center for doctor visits. She brings her own mug and fills it with soda in the hospital's cafeteria. The cafeteria does not have a posted price for refills, and typically the cashier charges her $1 or $1.50, Walters said.

But on Aug. 20, when Walters filled her mug with Diet Coke, the clerk charged $3.80.

"I told her that cannot be right and asked to talk to the manager," Walters said.

The manager told Walters the price is correct.

Walters decided she didn't want to pay that much and offered to return the soda, she said. But the manager told her there was no way to accept the returned soda and Walters had to pay. Walters refused, and she said she was angry by this point, and she poured the soda onto the counter.

I can absolutely see myself doing this. Will try to remember this as a reason to not take my father to a doctor appointment when asked.

The manager banned Walters from the cafeteria. Walters left but remained in the hospital for a couple of hours waiting for her father to finish his appointments. No one came to talk to her, so she assumed the soda ordeal was over.

What happened the next day upsets Walters most.Welcome to post-9/11 America, Ms. Walters."They did not know who I was. But they had the whole thing on videotape," she said.

The tapes also showed her with her father in other areas of the hospital.

The next day, while her father was at a dental appointment at the VA, an official came in, told him about the incident and asked him to have his daughter contact the hospital.

"They accessed my father's medical records to find out his next appointment to try and find me," she said. "I think that is a (federal health privacy law) violation. Medical records are private," she said. "They should not have used a veteran's medical records to find me. ... My dad was upset. He could not believe it."

Next time I have to sign a HIPAA form, I've got to check the part where your information can be used to track down my family members accused of heinous Federal offenses (like kidnapping, counterfeiting $100's or spilling soda).

Walters never contacted the VA, and that was the last she heard about the incident until a Statesman reporter contacted her Wednesday and informed her of the federal charges and her Oct. 8 arraignment.

She was shocked.

"My father is a veteran. It is a federal facility for veterans. This should have been handled differently," she said. "This is extreme. This is totally extreme. Well, if they have that much time on their hands go for it."

There was a sidebar describing the charges/penalties she faced

Count 1, misdemeanor larceny: " ... consuming a soft drink beverage belonging to the Department of Veterans Affairs without paying for it."

Maximum sentence: 6 months in prison and a $500 fine

Count 2, disturbance: " ... intentionally pouring soft drink beverage from a large mug over the cash register and onto the floor during a disagreement with the cashier over payment."

Maximum sentence: 6 months in prison and a $250 fine.

On the court documents, federal prosecutors estimated a trial on the case would last last two days.

Two days, months in prison and hundreds of dollars in fines. Plus the hundreds in lawyer fees, court costs, etc. Over , what? 64 oz. of flavored carbonated beerage?

Then today, er, yesterday, the Statesman ran this follow-up: Idaho woman agrees to fine in dumped soda case

BOISE, Idaho — A federal judge has dismissed a case against a northern Idaho woman who refused to pay for a $3.80 soft drink refill and then dumped it on a cafeteria counter at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Boise.

Natalie Walters has agreed to pay a $200 fine - the equivalent of more than 50 soda refills at the medical center.

$200? I can see where she'd agree to that, just to get this stupid chapter of her life behind her. But $200? That's a crime.