Mass. woman gets 6 years for Christmas break-ins

GREENFIELD, Mass. (AP) - A judge has sentenced a former Springfield flower shop owner to six years in jail for several armed home break-ins during the 2011 Christmas season.

The Springfield Republican reports 49-year-old Nancy Gehrung's lawyer and one of her alleged victims urged Judge Mary-Lou Rup to be compassionate because of Gehrung's psychological problems. Rup allowed her to serve her sentence in a county facility instead of state prison.

Gehrung pleaded guilty to charges including armed assault, armed robbery, armed entering in the nighttime to commit a felony and larceny over $250. She apologized in court.

Prosecutors said Gehrung broke into homes in Holyoke, Northampton and Williamsburg, and one family found her next to their Christmas tree with a pistol.

She faces Connecticut charges alleging she stole a gun from a police officer's car and robbed an Enfield package store.

Cox Media Group