Sobolewski, A Pennsylvania man is facing up to seven years in prison for allegedly shortchanging a store clerk by 43 cents when purchasing a Mountain Dew bottle.
On Aug. 23, Joseph Sobolewski placed $2 on the counter at an Exxon gas station for his beverage. The gas station” had a 2- for 3$ beverage special. Sobolewski wanted one rather than two beverages and believed that the 2$ left on the counter was sufficient to cover the cost of the single beverage, except it wasn’t. Sobolewski was short by 43 cents. The store called the police who later arrested and charged him. A court gave Sobolewski a $50,000 cash-only bond.
The August incident was one of two priors offenses Sobolewski committed within ten years. And under state law subjects him to harsh penalties for third and subsequent offenses are graded as third-degree felonies.
Criminal justice policy counselor with ACLU Philadelphia Nyssa Taylor said that Sobolewski’s arrest is similar to other arrests the department has made. “The state prisons are bulging,” Taylor said. “We don’t need to be jailing people over this. It’s punishment of poverty and substance use disorder.”