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CASSOPOLIS — What would you do if you found a lost purse in a store shopping cart?

Cass County Circuit Court Judge Michael Dodge said a reasonable person would do the right thing and turn it into a grocery store employee.

That’s not what 45-year-old Evelyn Demorrow, of Dowagiac, did when she saw a purse in a shopping cart at Pamida in Dowagiac on Dec. 17.

Demorrow took the purse and, along with a friend, forged and cashed some checks found inside.

Dodge characterized Demorrow’s actions as serious and sentenced her to 120 days in Cass County Jail with credit for 53 days Friday.

“That is a heck of a thing to have happen to you right before Christmas … somebody realizes their purse is gone, all their money, their checks and everything, and you are out there … writing bad checks,” Dodge said.

Demorrow pleaded guilty to larceny in a building May 7. The sentence guideline for her conviction was zero to six months in jail.