Because she had voluntarily repaid the money she had stolen, and had apologized in writing to her former employer, Sharra McArthur was handed a two-month conditional sentence plus one year's probation.

The two months of house arrest assessed by Ontario Court Justice Douglas Maund was half what the Crown had requested, and the judge emphasized that he had taken into account the 22-year-old woman's guilty plea, the repayment of the funds, and that she had "apologized to everyone."

The amount of funds taken from The Beer Store during the woman's short term of employment this spring was only about $970.

But Justice Maund said the act of taking the money called for a period of incarceration because of her position of trust.

During the period of house arrest, Ms. McArthur must remain in her mother's home at all times except for medical emergencies, employment or school attendance.