People v. Jones CA3

I.

BACKGROUND

On October 27, 2012, 76-year-old Margaret Ray parked in front of a shopping center and got out of her van, holding her keys and her cane in her right hand and her purse over her left shoulder. Defendant rode up to Ray on his bicycle and grabbed the strap of her purse. Defendant yanked on Ray’s purse and the strap slipped down her left arm to her hand; he yanked again and pulled the purse free. Defendant then “hopped his bike up on a [curb]” and rode away. As defendant turned the corner of the building, Ray yelled for help. Three men (Douglas Foster, Andrew Wing, and Shawn McMahon) came out of a nearby “Liberty Safe” store and chased defendant; Ray called 911. Foster saw defendant on his bike but did not see defendant’s face; he ran after defendant. Wing ran out the back of the store, where he caught up with Foster; they continued to chase defendant together. McMahon did not want to leave the store unattended and open so he stayed behind to lock the doors. He then ran after Foster and Wing. At some point, defendant ended up at the bottom of a loading bay beside his bike. When they got to the loading bay, Wing and Foster saw defendant going through his backpack.…