Atlanta Living category interest

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - A DeKalb County man has been sentenced to life in prison without parole for robbing a jewelry store in 2013, according to the Cherokee County district attorney.

The district attorney said Erin Stephon Arms robbed the Cartersville Jewelry Exchange on Riverstone Parkway on Nov. 22, 2013. He went into the store, pulled out a gun and ordered two employees onto the floor. He then robbed the store, leaving in a stolen truck with more than $50,000 in jewelry.

According to the district attorney, a man driving by saw Arms leave the store and followed him, tracking Arms’ path with a dashcam. Arms later abandoned the truck.

During the trial, one of the store’s employees said, “I had nightmares for months. I still have nightmares. Every time I get a call about the trial, the nightmares return. The terror. I can’t wake myself up and over and over and over I have to hear my teenage coworker cry and whimper in fear of her life. I’m right back in the moment, praying, crying, pleading to walk away.”

Arms was convicted of armed robbery. During the trial, the prosecution argued that Arms was a “recidivist offender,” owing to three prior felony convictions. The prosecution requested life without parole, while the defense requested 20 years in confinement with credit for time served.

Superior Court Judge David Cannon Jr. sided with the prosecution and sentenced Arms to life in prison without parole. He also cannot contact either of the victims.