15-Year-Old Shoplifter Smirked in Court — But What Happened Next Wiped the Smile Off His Face

A Pattern of Trouble

This wasn’t Ethan’s first brush with the law. Two weeks earlier, he had stolen earbuds, candy bars, and a pack of energy drinks from a small convenience store in downtown Detroit.

Caught red-handed, he bolted toward the door—only to be stopped by a security guard who had been watching him on the cameras. According to the police report, Ethan was “uncooperative, mocking, and defiant.” Even as he was shoved into the back of a squad car, he laughed at the officers and sneered, “Don’t you have anything better to do?”

Now, here he was, standing in front of Judge Rebecca Harmon—a veteran of juvenile cases who had seen far too many kids with the same cocky grin.

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