A man who spent eight years in prison for raping a teenager and chopping off her forearms was sentenced Tuesday to 60 days in jail for stealing a disposable camera.

Lawrence Singleton changed his plea from innocent to no contest on the misdemeanor petty-theft charge."I don't think I can get a fair trial. I never have." said Singleton, 62, who was chased out of several California towns after his highly publicized 1987 release.

A security guard in a suburban Brandon drug store spotted Singleton taking a $10 camera from a display on April 8 and heading for the door with it tucked under his arm.

Hillsborough County Judge Debra Behnke imposed the maximum sentence after the prosecutor argued that the convicted rapist's criminal record left no other choice.

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He was convicted of raping 15-year-old Mary Vincent, cutting off her forearms with an ax and then leaving her for dead in a ditch along a central California roadside in 1978.

To much public protest, Singleton was freed in 1987 after serving eight years and four months of a 14-year sentence.

During his one-year parole, prison authorities shuttled Singleton from city to city in California, but protests followed his every move.

Singleton's home state of Florida and Nevada, where he maintained a home, both refused to take him.

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