A former Olympian had her entire life and career ruined thanks to a shopping trip. You can blame a Walmart self-checkout register for the "living nightmare."
Former Olympian Meaggan Pettipiece accidentally failed to scan two items at the Walmart self-checkout register. This led to both her arrest and forced resignation as a NCAA Division 1 softball coach. The incident happened earlier this year. But she is still feeling the effects.
Pettipiece accidentally didn't scam some asparagus and ham at the store. However, she did pay for the other $176 worth of groceries. This led Walmart security to call the police on her. Police ended up arresting her for shoplifting. They also found three disposable vapes and two unopened blister packs that had Zofran in her purse. They charged her with theft, possession of marijuana, and possession of a controlled substance.
However, the former Olympian said the vapes did not contain either nicotine nor THC. Likewise, she claimed she had the Zofran for an assistant coach for nausea. She forgot they were in her purse. She ended up having to resign as head coach for the Valparaiso softball team.
Former Olympian Faces Uncertain Future After Walmart Encounter
"We both forgot about them," she said. Ultimately, the former Olympion submitted a application for dismissal. She had character letters and proof of her assistant's prescription. The judge dropped the charges but the damage was done.
"It is bittersweet," she told National Post. "I'm happy, obviously, the charges were dismissed. The sad part is the damage it did to my career. It has changed everything in my life."
She lost her entire career over the mess up. "I lost my career, I lost my job, the life I was building and it's been really difficult," Pettipiece said. "The softball community is a tightknit group and it (the news) went through like wildfire."
"You really do learn who the people are that really believe in you and trust you and are truly a friend for you," Pettipiece added.
Right now, the former Olympian is living with her family. "I'm happy my family's all back together. We sacrificed as a family for me to be there coaching and continuing my coaching career," she said.
The former Olympian faces an uncertain future.
"The tough thing is, how do you get out to people that you are innocent? And this damage was done for something so ridiculous," Pettipiece told the outlet. "I'm not sure of the future. For now, I'm going to stay at home and focus on my kids. I'd like to figure out which direction I'm going to go in."
