Judge: 86-year-old jewel thief too sick for trial

ATLANTA (AP) — A well-known jewel thief who reflected on her six-decade criminal career in a 2013 documentary has been deemed too ill to stand trial for an alleged 2015 theft.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that 86-year-old Doris Payne’s trial was scheduled to start Feb. 21 in the theft of a pair of Christian Dior earrings from a Saks Fifth Avenue store.

But the trial is on hold. An administrative order signed by a judge says the defense has demonstrated that Payne’s medical condition precludes the case from moving forward.

Meanwhile, she awaits arraignment after her December arrest at a store in Atlanta’s Perimeter Mall.

Payne, her family and friends discuss her life in the documentary “The Life and Crimes of Doris Payne.”