Valparaiso University head softball coach Meaggan Pettipiece resigned Monday following a March 28 incident at Walmart in Valparaiso.
On Tuesday, Pettipiece, 48, was charged with theft, possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance in Porter Superior Court.
A Walmart employee notified Valparaiso police March 28 that he detained Pettipiece after security footage showed she placed multiple items, including ham, asparagus and plastic Easter grass, in a grocery bag without scanning them at the self-checkout register.
A police report said Pettipiece purchased $176.39 of general merchandise in the transaction with unpaid merchandise valued at $67.71.
After being detained in the store, Pettipiece told store officials she did not intentionally fail to scan and pay for all items in her cart before leaving.
A Valparaiso police officer took Pettipiece to the Porter County Jail for booking and a jail officer found three disposable THC vapes in her purse and two unopened packs of ondansetron (Zofran).
Pettipiece told police she was from Ohio where she said THC was legal. Pettipiece said she did not have a prescription for Zofran, a non-narcotic drug used to prevent nausea.
In a news release, VU interim athletic director Laurel Hosmer said assistant softball coach Laney Jones will serve as interim coach for the remainder of the season. Hosmer said a national search will begin for a new head coach at the end of the season.
Pettipiece previously served as head softball coach at the University of Akron. She was in her second year at VU.
Carole Carlson is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
