Man receives 23rd felony conviction after burglarizing Knoxville Walmart

According to the District Attorney General's office, a 36-year-old man was convicted of his 23rd felony on Tuesday after he burglarized a Walmart.

According to the DA, Curtis Logan Lawson was convicted of burglary, theft and criminal trespassing Tuesday. his case was set for sentencing on May 11. Lawson will face a minimum sentence of 12 years.

Lawson was convicted after a jury found that he entered the Walmart at University Commons in Knoxville even though he had been banned from all Walmart stores for a previous theft conviction in Sevier County. On December 26, 2016, Lawson entered the store with a shopping bag and a receipt for goods that had previously been purchased.

According to the DA's office, loss prevention officers watched Lawson take items from shelves that matched the items on the receipt so that he could return them for cash. In-store surveillance cameras captured him doing this, and he was arrested by the Knox County Sheriff's Office.

Lawson had 22 prior felony convictions and at least 12 misdemeanor convictions out of Sevier and Knox Counties, including 18 prior burglary convictions. Because of that criminal history, the DA's office said Lawson faced a sentence of 12 years in prison.