A Winona woman charged after a failed carjacking has been sentenced to 23 months in prison, stayed for 10 years, and time already served in jail.
Ann May Kittle, 39, pleaded guilty in June to simple robbery, a felony. Olmsted County District Court Judge Mary Leahy handed down the sentence Tuesday.
In addition to the stayed prison time, Kittle was also ordered to undergo chemical dependency evaluation/treatment and a psychological evaluation/treatment, and must complete 50 hours of community work service.
The case began about 12:30 p.m. May 26, when Kittle waved down a 23-year-old woman at People's Food Co-op, asked for a ride to Winona and offered to pay her $300.
The woman declined, but offered to take her to Walmart South, 25 25th St. SE, the report says. Instead, the two ended up in the parking lot of Savers, at 1201 Broadway Ave., where the victim tried to drop Kittle off.
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Kittle then tried to pull the keys from the ignition, said Capt. John Sherwin, eventually pulling off every key except the one in the ignition. She ordered the victim out of the car, spraying her with something in a black canister.
Both women got out of the vehicle, and the victim was sprayed again, Sherwin said. Kittle got into the driver's seat, but was unable to start the vehicle because it wasn't in park.
Several people witnessed the altercation, Sherwin said, and the victim was calling for help, but no one intervened.
Kittle fled, but officers were in the area quickly, and found her in the Hy-Vee parking lot at 500 Crossroads Drive SW. One of the officers had dealt with Kittle earlier that day at a business on South Broadway, the criminal complaint says, when she was asking people for money — again, for a ride to Winona.
That officer had taken her to the Salvation Army, where Kittle received a voucher for a bus ride to Winona. When he saw her after the incident in the Savers lot, the officer asked her why she didn't get on the bus.
Kittle allegedly told him she was hungry, and didn't want to wait for the bus.
Two cans of hairspray were also located, and the victim confirmed she believed that was what she'd been sprayed with. No injuries were reported.
