He's FREE!!!!!!!!!

Thank you for all of your support and prayers!! More will follow but for now ....

http://www.kctv5.com/news/26123342/detail.html

VERSAILLES, Mo. -- Criminal charges were dropped Monday against a Raymore man who was the subject of an investigation into thefts at several rural Walmarts.
Glenn Stevens, 74, took a lie detector test in Versailles, Mo., on Monday and then the newly elected Morgan County prosecutor informed him that the charges against him had been dropped. Stevens had been accused of stealing $1,500 worth of computer equipment from a Walmart store in Versailles."It's hard to describe how I feel," an emotional Stevens told KCTV5's Dana Wright. "It really is. It's relief knowing we don't have to continue waiting. We don't have to ...."Surrounded by his wife and family, Stevens broke down crying after learning his five-month long journey through the legal system was coming to a close.From the moment of his arrest last July in a string of Walmart thefts, Stevens and his wife of 54 years, Irene, swore that he had never set foot in the Walmart store in Versailles.At 6 a.m. Monday, the Stevens family headed to Versailles for a meeting with the prosecutor. The prosecutor agreed that Stevens was not the person that was captured on surveillance video."Clearly the build is different," said Prosecutor Dustin Dunklee. "Clearly it is a taller person because of the way the cart hits him. They had a lot of video. When he grabs things off the shelf he uses his left hand. Longer hair. Whiter underneath. Glasses. Glenn has perfect vision. There were just a lot of things that made it clear it was not Glenn."Stevens remains charged in two other thefts at rural Walmarts. His attorneys continue to work to get those charges dropped. Those charges are based on the case in Versailles and the attorneys believe those charges will also be dropped now that the Versailles charges have been dropped.The Stevens family said they will never go to Versailles or set foot in a Walmart store.

Previous Stories:

• November 12, 2010: KCTV5 Investigation: Wrongful Arrest?

Message to Wal-Mart

This came from Glenns niece Kathee through a friend of hers. Thank you Shaylyn for your letter.  It is a wonderful letter and the family appreciates everything.

Kath,
I just sent the following feedback to Wal-Mart's corporate headquarters. It may not make a bit of difference, but I wanted you to know.
Shay

 Dear Sir or Madam,

I have recently become acquainted with the case of Mr. Glenn Stevens in the state of Missouri via the social-networking site Facebook. I have to say, I was terribly disappointed to hear that a company like Wal-Mart with the ability to do so much good was persecuting a very obviously innocent 74 year old man.

I reference an article from the Kansas City Star, which may be found here: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/11/25/2471853/theft-charges-create-nightmare.html.

I find it appalling that with clear evidence to exonerate this gentleman, Wal-Mart and the various localities mentioned continue to persecute both him and his family to tremendous mental and financial detriment without justifiable cause.

I would expect significantly better from a company that is as far-reaching and supposedly committed to doing what is right for the communities it serves.

I implore you to look into this situation further, to dismiss all charges, and to make proper restitution to this man and his family. Especially as the holidays approach. I cannot imagine how they must feel with such a horrible situation hanging over their heads during what should be a joyful time of year.

Until such time as this is resolved, I feel I cannot support Wal-Mart. Injustice in any form is horrific. When an elderly man is suffering due to improper due diligence in large by Wal-Mart personnel, I seriously question whether Wal-Mart is an company with which I can feel good about spending money. Based on the article, this man and his wife have been suffering for five months as of now.

I truly hope that this is some sort of oversight and that Wal-Mart, in a commitment to truth and fairness will drop all charges, formally apologize, and make amends to the Stevens family. I sincerely hope to be able to shop at Wal-Mart again in the future, as it has always provided great values for my family. However, in light of this situation, I cannot in good conscience shop at your stores until this matter is resolved satisfactorily.

I thank you for your time and consideration, and hope that the next article I read regarding this situation will state that Wal-Mart has rectified the circumstances fairly and justly.

Sincerely,
Shaylyn Baker

KCTV'S DANA WRIGHT'S SWEEPS PIECE CONTINUES TO REVERBERATE

http://www.bottomlinecom.com/kcnews/danawrightssweepstory.html

12-06-2010

'SHE'S A GREAT PERSON'

The November TV sweeps period is now history.  Kansas City's TV stations did a wide variety of sweeps pieces--some good, some not-so-good and some horrrible ones.
    At least one sweeps piece by KCTV investigative reporter Dana Wright is destined to become an award-winner as she was the first KC journalist to report on the bizarre story of the arrest of 74-year-old Glenn Stevens, who has been charged with a string of robberies at Walmarts in three states. (See her explanation of the story below.)    Stevens and his wife of 56 years, Irene, 72, are the parents of five children and live in a senior community in Raymore, MO. He worked most of his life at a landfill and today he and Irene operate a modest office cleaning company.
    Their peaceful life was completely turned upside down on July 1 when police announced they had a warrant for his arrest. He thought it was some sort of mistake and went to the police station to clear things up.
    Shortly thereafter police tossed him in jail for the first time in his life. His bail was set at an unbelievable $30,000 in cash. The stunned family had to frantically come together to raise the funds.
    "We actually had to take $30,000 in cash to the jail to get dad out," says Glenn's son Tom. "We were scared to death to even go there with that kind of money."
    The stunned family sent an email to local media outlets asking for help, and Wright immediately jumped on the story.
    "Dana Wright is a great person,"Tom told Bottom Line. "We really don't know what we would have done without her.  And she has promised us she isn't going away."          Wright's superb sweeps piece (11/11) highlighted that Glenn Stevens has proof he was nowhere near at least one Walmart robbery in question.
    "How can this be happening in this country?" a visibly upset Stevens asked Wright. "I can tell you it's happening to me, and I’m living the nightmare every day."
    Footage taken by Stevens' lawyer of him scared and crying in jail was extremely moving.
    So far, the Stevens family has been forced to mortgage one family home and spend $70,000 trying to clear his name.  Irene has been hospitalized for two days because of the stress.
     Veteran Kansas City Star reporter Donald Bradley did an extensive front-page story outlining the plight of the Stevens in an article titled "Theft charges create nightmare for Raymore couple" thant ran November 26.
    "(Glenn) He and Irene are old school. In life, money and, especially, love," wrote Bradley. "Glenn has no bigger believer in his innocence than his wife. He didn’t do it and she’ll tell you how she knows."
     WDAF-FOX reporter Monica Evans interviewed the Stevens for a piece (11/29).    The Stevens, Dana Wright, their attorney Daniel Miller and family members went on the "Shanin & Parks" show (12/3) on KMBZ-980 AM). Listen to (link to Podcast) Glenn explain his story and break down over the entire incident. 
      In fact, Darla Jaye, who was subbing for Mike Shanin on the show, was so stunned by the story that she will have the Stevens on her show "980 Live With Darla Jaye" tonight (6- 9 p.m.).
      Ironically, Glenn and Irene Stevens had never done a media interview in their lives until they sat down with Dana Wright, who calls the entire story "astounding.

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WRIGHT DISCUSSES THE STEVENS STORY  KCTV's sterling investigative reporter Dana Wright discussed with Bottom Line the background details that resulted in the story of the Glenn Stevens story:
    "Our team spent five months following the Stevens family and we continue working every day to get to the bottom of the Walmart thefts.  It's one of those stories that keeps us up at night.  
   "I can tell you, it appears none of the small town police departments are working together to solve the cases.  Glenn has been charged in three small towns.  
   "I have personally spoken to authorities who tell me they have no independent information linking Glenn to crimes in their jurisdiction.  Police are simply basing their case on Glenn's original arrest out of Versailles. 
   "One thing that didn't make it into our story?
   "Glenn and Irene have owned his own office cleaning company for 20 years. He points out, if he truly wanted to steal computer equipment,  he has access codes to office complexes all over the city.  
   "Why would he drive three hours away to steal a computer mouse from Wal-Mart?   The Stevens have cleaned buildings for the same clients for two decades.  
   "The night he was arrested in the Versailles case? Irene left the police department with zero understanding of why they were taking Glenn away. She then drove, sobbing, to one of their clients buildings and finished cleaning for Glenn.  
   "She said to me, 'We have people depending on us."  This is the kind of family we are talking about.  Please pass on our team's story, along with the surveillance photo of the thief.   I truly believe someone will eventually recognize the surveillance picture and turn in the group responsible for the Wal-Mart thefts.
   "Irene summed it up best when she said to me 'We're getting too old for this kind of stuff.'
   "It has been frustrating, as a reporter, to watch this story play out over so many months. Sadly, it appears this will drag on for the family for months to come. Glenn is due in court after the first of the year.   
   "We will be there."  

KMBZ radio Interview

Also listen in on Monday 12/06/2010 @ 6pm to KMBZ Live radio for a 2 hour broadcast!!


CLICK HERE to listen to the broadcast. This is a recorded copy of the original - we are working on getting the actual podcast.

Versailles Police Department

Day 156

Removed for now.... may repost at a later date.

PLEASE TWEET and help Get word out on twitter

We're trying to get #GlennIsInnocent trending on Twitter - visit http://twitter.com/KatheeHummel/status/11124501496467456 to retweet my original Tweet, or make your own, but be sure to use the hashtag of #GlennIsInnocent   (thank you to my great friend Krystal Seidel for help with getting this tweet/trend set properly - posted by kathee - niece of Glenn and Irene)

Thank you to Groucho For his Blogspots!

A Raymore MO Family Man Gets Criminally Railroaded by Walmart-Police

He has taken on writing about this case on his blogspot too.  Thank you for your support.

Theft charges look like shabby prosecution!

Theft charges look like shabby prosecution!
Barb Shelly

Here’s an excerpt from Don Bradley’s story in today’s Kansas City Star about 74-year-old Glenn Stevens of Raymore, Mo., who faces extremely flimsy charges of stealing goods from three Walmarts and is a suspect in thefts at nearly 20 other stores.

After that first night in the Cass County jail in Harrisonville, Glenn was loaded into a crowded van and transported to Morgan County. He said a police officer told him that he would get a chance to prove his innocence. Glenn thought it worked the other way — that the state had to prove his guilt. But he’s prepared either way.

Actually, Stevens is right. And it’s pretty shocking that he got charged in these thefts, although he doesn’t own the getaway vehicle, he doesn’t look like the theft in a surveillance video, and he was supposedly fingered by his brother, Charles, and Glenn doesn’t have a brother named Charles.
Also, his family and his attorneys claim that cell phone records, a bank deposit slip and a dinner receipt would show that Stevens was nowhere near the Walmarts he supposedly knocked off.
Wouldn’t you think prosecutors would give the guy a chance to present his alibi before charging him with a crime, making him spend nights in jail, and forcing Stevens, his wife and children to ante up $70,000 in legal fees and costs to cover their nighttime cleaning business?
Two of the prosecutors involved are showing signs of backing down. Prosecutor Jerry Hathaway of Allen County, Kan., agreed that the case against Stevens looked “fishy,” and said he would drop the charge in his jurisdiction if nothing more substantive turned up.
That’s good. But Hathaway and the other prosecutors should have insisted on the higher standard in the first place.

South Kansas City Observer blog

South Kansas City Observer blog

There's a serious miscarriage of justice going on and it's going on right here in the Kansas City metro. It came to big light after KCTV5 aired their special report on the arrests of Raymore resident Glenn Stevens in late November. They'd been contacted by the Stevens family in the summertime and worked on the investigation for several months.

The story was also picked up by the Kansas City Star. Today, Mr. Stevens, his wife Irene, their lawyer and Channel 5's Dana Wright were guests of the Shanin and Parks Show on KMBZ. Blogger Groucho of Capt. Spaulding's World has also been following this case.

In a nutshell, Mr. Stevens has been accused of stealing from retail giant Wal-Mart. He has been charged with thefts at three Wal-Marts. They have actually been looking at him as a suspect in a string of thefts from 20 Wal-Marts! He has never been arraigned for these three known charges, but he has been taken to jail. For the Nodaway county case, he was jailed with a cash only bond of $30,000, a bond more appropriate to a violent crime involving a weapon! He spent July 4th in jail due to these charges and this ridiculous bail.

Mr. Stevens has proof that he was elsewhere during the alleged theft from the Wal-Mart in the Nodaway county town of Versailles. They won't even look at it. During Dana Wright's report, the police officer makes the outrageous statement that Mr. Stevens will have to work to show his innocence of the charges--an exact reverse of how the system is supposed to work!

As a sign of support to this innocent man, The Observer has his picture up on the side bar. Clicking on the photo will lead you to Glenn Stevens is Innocent--a blog maintained by one of his children. Leroy Stevens is putting everything about the cases he can up on the blog so it will be a vital way to stay in touch with this awful case.

Also you should read Groucho's posts on the matter as well, here, here and here. I know it's tough, but consider boycotting Wal-Mart--at least until they admit they are wrong and remove themselves as complainant in these bogus charges.

This man is just two years older than the Observer's mother and was born the same year as the Observer's late father--I am trying to imagine my mother going to jail for something she didn't do and would never consider doing. It's just outrageous.