Man gets 20 months for snatching purse

A transient man who pushed a woman onto the ground and stole her purse was sentenced Thursday to 20 months in prison.

Travis M. Stacy, 24, pleaded guilty in Clark County Superior Court to second-degree robbery with an aggravating factor — vulnerable victim — in connection with the Aug. 9 incident.

According to a probable cause affidavit, the victim was walking south on Northeast 107th Avenue near Southeast Fourth Street in Vancouver when Stacy approached from behind, grabbed her and pushed her to the ground. He stole her purse and ran from the scene, according to court records.

Police found Stacy near Mill Plain Boulevard and the Interstate 205 overpass. The victim positively identified him as the man who attacked her.

Stacy’s defense attorney, Jeff Staples, said on Thursday that his client wouldn’t have committed the crime if it weren’t for his drug addiction. Stacy agreed.

“I’m sorry. I know I messed up,” Stacy said.

Judge David Gregerson agreed to follow the attorneys’ sentencing recommendation of 20 months, a longer-than-normal sentence because of the aggravating factor.