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A 65-year-old Fort Worth woman ran down the man who stole her purse with her own car on March 1, 2009, and the suspect later was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Val Renfro had just finished shopping at an office supply store in east Fort Worth and was getting into her car when a man shoved her twice, grabbed her purse and ran, according to police. Renfro pulled a cell phone from where she had it tucked in her bra, dialed 911 and drove after him, describing his clothing and direction to the dispatcher.

On the recording, Renfro can be heard confronting the man after she caught up to him, telling him to put the purse on the hood of her car. When he tried to run again, she hit him with the car, knocking him to the ground. He was not seriously hurt.

A pair of bystanders helped hold him down until Fort Worth police arrived. Police identified the suspect as Ricky Lee Sample, 47, who was already on parole and had prior convictions for burglary, theft and drug possession.

Sample was booked into the Tarrant County Jail on a charge of aggravated robbery, enhanced because Renfro qualified as an elderly victim under Texas law. He pleaded guilty in a plea agreement with prosecutors and was sentenced that September to 30 years in prison, avoiding a maximum possible sentence of life.

At the sentencing hearing, Renfro addressed him directly for several minutes before the sentence was handed down. The 911 call and the chase drew national attention in the weeks that followed, with Renfro appearing on NBC's Today show, Inside Edition and CNN to describe the confrontation. She later said the experience left her warier of strangers even after the case was resolved.