A troubled homeless woman bounced from a mental health facility to Kroger and then back to Kroger again in the span of less than 12 hours — ending with yet another arrest and another release back onto the street.
Portsmouth police were first called to a local mental health facility around 2:15 p.m. after staff reported Linda Parker was in the lobby yelling and pounding on windows.
By the time officers arrived, she was gone.
No report was taken.
Hours later, Parker turned up at the Kroger on Gay Street.
Around 10:30 p.m., employees reported a woman in a burgundy coat carrying a red bag who had already been trespassed from the property.
Police said she kept walking and was not initially stopping for officers.
She was eventually detained, and officers gathered information for a criminal trespass report.
That still was not the end of the night.
Back at Kroger After 1 A.M.
At about 1:15 a.m., employees called again.
Parker had returned.
This time, workers said she was refusing to leave and drinking alcohol on benches outside the pharmacy.
Officers took her into custody on charges of disorderly conduct and probation violation.
She was booked into the Scioto County Jail.
Parker later appeared in Portsmouth Municipal Court and was released on her own recognizance, with a pretrial hearing scheduled for October 15.
And then she was back out on the street again.
More Than 50 Trips Through Court
The latest arrest is only one piece of a much longer pattern.
Court records show Parker was convicted of criminal mischief twice in July and criminal trespass on July 7.
She also has a disorderly conduct conviction from September 2025.
In 2023 alone, Parker was arrested 11 times on charges that included felonious assault, criminal damaging, criminal trespass, persistent disorderly conduct, and petty theft.
In 2022, she faced charges including false alarm, persistent disorderly conduct, and inducing panic.
Other cases over the years have involved charges such as resisting arrest, obstructing official business, menacing by stalking, contempt, and intimidation.
Altogether, court records show Parker has appeared in court more than 50 times.
That does not mean every charge resulted in a conviction. But the sheer volume of police calls, arrests, court appearances, and releases shows a cycle that keeps repeating.
This latest episode started at a mental health facility in the afternoon, moved to Kroger late at night, continued after 1 a.m., and ended with another jail booking.
Then, once again, Parker was released back onto the street.
