Woman sentenced for Sheetz robbery

It was a scheme hatched while Emily French was chugging stolen beers in a Sheetz bathroom after being awake for four days high on methamphet- amine, said defense attorney James Matthews.

“This is not Miss French at her best,” Matthews said. “If you look at her record, this isn’t Miss French at all.”

Lake County Common Pleas Court Judge John P. O’Donnell sentenced French, 26, to four years in prison Nov. 21 for a Feb. 28 Perry Township Sheetz

robbery. She pleaded guilty in October to second-degree felony robbery with a oneyear firearm specification that carried a mandatory one-year sentence.

French, formerly of Fairport Harbor, said that on the morning of the robbery she was dropped off at the Sheetz by her then boyfriend. She said they were in a fight. He had no money and she wanted more drugs, so she told him to drop her off and she was going to have a friend pick her up so she could go get high.

According to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, she spent 48 minutes at the 2800 North Ridge Road store before handing a cashier a note that read “Pull all the money you have in the drawers on the counter and don’t tell anyone I have a gun.” She then put her hands in her pockets and told the cashier not to make any sudden movements such as hit the panic button or she would shoot him.

The cashier opened up the register drawer and placed $363.68 on the counter. French took the money, said she was sorry and left.

French reiterated her apology at her sentencing.

“Looking back I really

have a lot of remorse saying that to someone who is completely innocent,” she said. “That’s uncalled for and a really selfish act.”

Despite her plea, French has maintained that she did not have a gun during the robbery.

Assistant Lake County Prosecutor Lisa Neroda said not only is French required to go to prison because of the firearm specification, she should go to prison.

“We’ve talked a lot about the fact that the this is a result to obtain money for a drug habit, but it was within the complete control of the defendant,” she said.

Neroda said she put the young clerk “in a position where he won’t look at things the same way again as a result of that experience.”

French had previously gone through treatment at Lake-Geauga Recovery Centers, Inc. and was on probation for two years. She said she was doing “quite well,” but about six months after her probation ended, she was introduced to harder drugs of heroin, meth and crack cocaine by acquaintances.

“The shame here is you knew what to do up until some time approaching mid-2014 you just didn’t do it,” O’Donnell said.

French has 86 days jail credit. Once she is released she will have three years of post release control.

French