Second man indicted in ruby slippers theft from Judy Garland museum

DULUTH — Two months after a man was sentenced to time served for his role in the theft of ruby slippers worn by Judy Garland in “The Wizard of Oz,” a second Minnesota man with a history of stealing has also been indicted by a federal grand jury.

Jerry Hal Saliterman of Crystal is charged with theft of a major artwork — the same charge Terry Jon Martin pleaded guilty to in late 2023. According to a redacted document unsealed Sunday night, Saliterman also threatened a woman with knowledge of the theft that he would distribute sex tapes to her family if she shared information about the case with the FBI.

Saliterman’s initial appearance in federal court was on Friday in St. Paul.

On Monday, the FBI released information that ownership of the shoes has been returned to owner Michael Shaw, a Hollywood memorabilia collector who had originally loaned Garland’s footwear to the museum. They were stolen in 2005 and recovered by the FBI in 2018, but no one was held responsible for years.

Shaw said he saw the ruby slippers for the first time since they were stolen about two months ago during a meetup with the FBI at the Judy Garland Museum — but he didn’t take them home with him.

“They’re in the hands of Heritage Auctions house and the FBI,” he said. “It’s much safer that way.”

Shaw said that seeing the slippers in February was like finding an old friend.

“That’s the way I felt about them,” he said. “I was so thrilled they were in such good condition. Now they can be used for good things.”

Staff from the Judy Garland Museum is presenting a bill before a legislative committee Tuesday seeking money to buy the slippers from the auction house.

“Obviously we’d upgrade our security system,” said Janie Heitz, executive director of the Judy Garland Museum. “We think it would be a huge attraction for visitors and a way to bring the whole story full circle.”

Saliterman, 76, was most recently convicted of misdemeanor theft in 2016 after attempting to steal nearly $700 worth of merchandise from an Apple Store in Roseville — but he has a long history of similar crimes. In 2012, he was convicted of theft of property and sentenced to 30 days in the Hennepin County jail, plus probation, and ordered to have no contact with a Golden Valley wholesale distributor. In both 1995 and 2000 he was convicted of being in possession of shoplifting gear, according to court documents.

He was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 1988 for concealing income from fencing-ring operations that included selling a stolen fur coat worth $18,000 for $5,000.

Martin pleaded guilty to stealing the ruby slippers in federal court in October 2023. He revealed details of the August 2005 theft, including taking a sledgehammer to the emergency exit and a plexiglass display case at the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minn. He said he believed the famed slippers were made with real gems — until an unidentified jewelry fence told him they were made of glass. The true value of the slippers was cultural: They were one of several pairs worn by Garland in the 1939 classic film.

Martin claimed he didn’t know what happened to the slippers after that meeting; he didn’t want anything to do with them, he said.

Martin was sentenced to time served in January. He will be on supervised probation for a year and has been ordered to make restitution payments of $300 per month to the Judy Garland Museum. In recent months, he has been on home hospice care and a mix of prescription drugs. Aside from alcohol-related infractions, he has seemingly lived a crime-free life in rural Grand Rapids for more than a decade.