Texas rare-book thief gets probation.(News Fronts)

A U.S. district court judge sentenced a Chicago woman to three years of probation January 30 and ordered her to pay restitution fees of $381,595 for the theft of nearly 400 rare books in the early 1990s from the Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin. As part of her plea agreement, Mimi Meyer, 57, agreed to provide information about the sale of the books as well as return materials still in her possession.

Attorney Michael Siegel told U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks during the trial that his client had made some "stupid decisions" as retaliation for a friend being fired, the February 1 Austin American-Statesman reported. "She hadn't …