The Morgan Hill woman who allegedly used her 10-year-old daughter to steal groceries from a local Safeway store in September pleaded no contest to second degree burglary and contributing to the delinquency of a minor Tuesday.
Marcy Erico, 38 of Morgan Hill, entered the plea at a hearing at South County Courthouse after her attorney and the prosecutor negotiated a deal that will require her to spend 60 days in Santa Clara County Jail, according to Superior Court Judge Jerome Nadler.
Erico is out of custody, and is scheduled to return to court March 11 to be formally sentenced.
Police responded to the Sept. 19 burglary incident at the Tennant Station Safeway store to find Erico’s daughter detained by store staff for attempting to steal a cart full of beer and other groceries.
An investigation determined that Erico and the girl had entered the store together, police said. The two filled a shopping cart with beer and groceries, and Erico instructed her daughter to wait inside the store with the cart while she retrieved the car.
When Erico pulled the car up to the store’s door, her daughter was instructed to push the cart out, and the two would load the stolen contents into the car, police said.
However, Safeway employees saw the girl attempting to leave with the groceries and stopped her, police said. Erico drove away, abandoning her daughter at the store.
Among the $150 worth of groceries was a 24-pack of beer, police said. Authorities added that Erico and her daughter committed a similar theft about a week earlier, making off with $60 worth of groceries in that incident at the same store.
Authorities caught up with Erico Sept. 28 at a hotel in Lyon County, Nev., where she had traveled with her 1-month-old son, police said. Erico was transported back to Santa Clara County, and the infant, who was unharmed, was returned to the custody of his grandmother. Her 10-year-old who was left at the store was released to the grandmother’s custody after the original theft.
Erico appeared in court Tuesday well dressed with two unknown adult companions – a man and a woman. She spoke during her hearing only when answering “yes” or “no” to a series of questions posed by Nadler, who asked her if she understood the meaning and conditions of her plea and negotiated sentence.
In addition to 60 days in jail, Erico agreed Tuesday to complete a 16-week theft awareness class, a 16-week parenting class, and to follow all orders from Child Protective Services regarding her children.
It is unclear if she currently has custody of her children.
She also agreed to three years of felony probation, which can be reduced to a misdemeanor after one year of probation if Erico complies with all the terms of her sentence, Nadler added.
Furthermore, she will be ordered to pay $264 to the court for restitution, plus an undetermined amount to the victim, Nadler said.
The maximum sentence for a conviction on felony second degree burglary would have been three years. The charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor is a misdemeanor.
Erico, who is represented by the county’s Public Defender’s Office, declined to comment on the case as she left the courtroom Tuesday.
