Less than a year after a cashed check caused her removal from office, Anne Arundel County’s former register of wills was issued a citation after allegedly shoplifting from a Walmart in Severn.

Court records show Erica Griswold, 51, was charged with misdemeanor theft on March 25, one week after $161 worth of household items were reported stolen from the county supercenter. According to the officer who wrote the citation, Griswold stole a set of sheets, curtains and bathroom appliances.

As of Friday, last month’s citation has not initiated a probation violation in Griswold’s 2024 misconduct case.

Defense attorney Peter O’Neill, who represented Griswold last year, said trial judges sometimes issue violation summonses for former defendants once they learn of a new charge. If that doesn’t happen, a conviction would violate Griswold’s probation, O’Neill said.

A violation could result in the reinstatement of the jail time Griswold was waived from serving last year. A trial in the shoplifting case is scheduled for May 1 in Glen Burnie District Court.

Griswold, who will be represented by a yet-unnamed public defender, did not respond to requests for comment.

In June 2024, Griswold pleaded guilty to misconduct after cashing a $6,645 check sent to the register’s office in Annapolis. According to state prosecutors, the check was made out to Griswold but was intended to pay a resident’s inheritance tax.

A month later, she was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation, with an 18-month jail term suspended.

As register, Griswold led the office that ensures estates are administered properly and in a timely manner. She was elected in 2022 after narrowly defeating four-term incumbent Lauren Parker and became the first Black person to hold the position since its creation in 1777.

Her tenure included the traditional responsibilities, but also an outreach program that aimed to familiarize the public with the will process. That initiative was ended after Griswold’s conviction and removal.

Despite her role of protecting the financial interests of residents after their death, court records revealed Griswold’s troubled financial history, with more than 20 years of missed payments and civil disputes. In total, since 2003, she’s been ordered to pay more than $32,000 in judgments.

In court, Griswold described the check scandal as one of the biggest challenges of her life, calling it a “costly mistake.” O’Neill told Anne Arundel Circuit Judge Stacy McCormack he didn’t think his client meant to steal the money. Griswold said she was offended by being publicly described as a thief.

Before she was sentenced, colleagues and friends advocated for Griswold in court, saying she had been “dragged through the coals” and called the Annapolis High School graduate a woman of honor.

Attorneys with the Maryland Office of the State Prosecutor painted a different picture — one involving retaliation, threats and deflection since the check was cashed.

Prosecutors said Griswold had “gaslit” her staff about the case and threatened to terminate anyone who reported her to authorities or the media. Griswold denied that accusation, saying it “broke her heart” to learn the things her staff claimed.

“The thing I’m guilty of is loving anyway, showing up anyway,” Griswold said.

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