Bryn Mawr Cleaning Lady Gets 6 Years in Jail for Stealing Ben Franklin Bust


The Bryn Mawr cleaning lady who stole a $3 million bust of Ben Franklin–sculpted during his lifetime–has been sentenced to six years in jail. A little backstory about 47-year-old Andrea Lawton:

Lawton took the bust because she was upset with the cleaning service that that had just fired her, and wanted to make money, authorities have said. When Lawton was assigned to clean the home the bust was stolen from, she had been told that the sculpture was extremely valuable and she shouldn’t touch it, court documents say.

The bust, a little damaged, has been returned. And the thief has been punished. Yet, there is still some potential for injustice here. Now that this case is in the books, hundreds of innocent Main Line cleaning ladies, already suspected of sniping things from their employers, who may now be subject to an even higher degree of withering Real Housewives/Naomi Campbell-style scrutiny. [Philly.com]