SANTA ANA, Calif. – A 79-year-old woman whose life as a jewel thief inspired a Halle Berry movie has pleaded not guilty to trying to steal a coat in Southern California.
The district attorney's office says Doris Payne entered her plea Tuesday on a felony count of grand theft. She was on parole for a previous theft and remains jailed without bail.
Costa Mesa police Lt. Mark Manley says Payne was arrested Friday for trying to steal a $1,300 Burberry trench coat from a Saks Fifth Avenue store.
Payne has described a five-decade career of posing as a fashionable, wealthy woman to steal rings and other costly jewelry around the world. She's been jailed numerous times.
Halle Berry reportedly has agreed to star in an upcoming movie about Payne's life, "Who is Doris Payne?"
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