From Fortune:

A dying thief who confessed to stealing ruby slippers Judy Garland wore in “The Wizard of Oz” received no prison time at sentencing. Terry Jon Martin, 76, stole the shoes in 2005 from the Judy Garland Museum. The FBI recovered the shoes in 2018 when another person tried to claim a reward. Martin had hoped to remove real rubies from the shoes and profit, but when he learned they were fake, he disposed of the slippers.
Martin stole the shoes under pressure from an old associate. Despite a long criminal history, Martin seemed to have turned his life around. Judge Schiltz recommended no prison time or a minimal payment of $300 a month, due to Martin being housebound in hospice care. Schiltz expressed that house arrest may not have been the sentence if the crime was originally committed in 2005.
Garland’s slippers have an estimated market value of $3.5 million. After they are returned and sold, it is unlikely they will be returned to their hometown of Grand Rapids, where a museum housed them. Frances Gumm, born in Grand Rapids, became Judy Garland. She lived in Grand Rapids during the first four years of her life but died in 1969. The Judy Garland Museum, located in her former home, claims to have the world’s largest collection of Garland and “Wizard of Oz” memorabilia.



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