High cost of high living cited in area hospital heists

Friday, March 4, 2005 | 11:12 a.m.

A 25-year-old mother of three who was arrested last month along with her crime partner allegedly spelled out their reasons for looting area hospitals: the high cost of room and board, drugs and panties in Las Vegas.

"They jack you up with the room cost of $80 a day and then food, pot, meth and other drugs. And some fresh panties sometimes. It all cost too much money," Shannon Smock is quoted as saying in Metro Police report about her arrest.

On Thursday, Smock and 35-year-old Curtis Prindle waived their right to a preliminary hearing before Las Vegas Justice of the Peace William Jansen and agreed to plead guilty to one count each of burglary, possession of stolen property and possession of a stolen vehicle.

In exchange for the duo's guilty pleas, prosecutors agreed to dismiss three of the four cases that had been filed against them.

Smock -- the mother of an 8-year-old girl, 3-year-old boy and 1-year-old boy -- and Prindle are expected to plead guilty to the three charges before District Judge Donald Mosley on March 10. The prosecution has retained the right to argue at sentencing.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Clark Peterson said having Smock and Prindle plead guilty to three felonies that if run consecutively by Mosley would have them serve a maximum of close to 30 years in prison was a success.

"It's a solid deal, especially because they are going to see significant prison time and all of the victims are named and have been accounted for. The success of this case is due to the tireless efforts of the Metro Police Department."

Peterson said Smock's three children have been placed under the care of Child Protective Services.

Police arrested Prindle and Smock on Feb. 2 after a routine traffic stop.

After pulling over the pair, Metro detectives found stolen identification, hospital equipment, hospital checks, billing information, credit cards and personal papers from Nevada, California, Utah and Arizona.

Metro also found evidence that the couple had been stealing purses, wallets, keys and cars from hospitals in Las Vegas and from hospitals in California, Arizona and Utah.

The Southern Nevada hospitals Prindle and Smock are accused of robbing are St. Rose Dominican Hospitals-Sienna Campus and Southern Hills Hospital.

Authorities wound up charging Prindle and Smock with 72 counts and 75 counts, respectively, of burglary, grand larceny, vehicle theft, auto burglary, fraud and forgery.

Deputy Public Defender Eric Rusley said if Mosley gives Smock and Prindle the maximum sentence and runs the counts consecutive they could each face 30 years in prison.

Rusley said under the terms of the agreement Prindle and Smock will not face any future charges from alleged acts that occurred at Las Vegas-area hospitals. If evidence arises that the pair committed crimes in other locations, additional charges may be filed.

In her statement to police Smock said the couple and her three children moved to Las Vegas from Salt Lake City Utah a few weeks before Christmas in 2004. She said the couple decided to rob businesses and hospitals because no businesses in town would give her or Prindle jobs. An investigation into what Las Vegas-area businesses Prindle and Smock may have robbed is ongoing.

Under normal circumstances the district attorney's office would have all the charges filed under one case, but because this investigation was made lengthy by the arduous task of locating the many victims at the different hospitals, separate cases were filed as the process went along.

The result was four cases, one each before Las Vegas Justices of the Peace William Jansen and Douglas Smith as well as two in James Bixler's courtroom.

In each state where they committed their crimes, Prindle and Smock worked as a team, police said.

Smock told police she came up with the idea of entering hospitals dressed in a nurse's uniform to steal items, according to the police report.