The Latest "Big Brother" Bad Apple

Apparently Big Brother wasn't watching closely enough when it came to selecting one of the show's latest bunch of housemates.

Janelle Pierzina, described on the Big Brother Website as a 25-year-old, single VIP cocktail waitress from Miami, whose hobbies include shopping, nearly didn't make into the house for a hobby she didn't list: shoplifting.

According to a report on TheSmokingGun.com, Pierzina, one of two contestants facing elimination this week, made a last-minute appearance in a Los Angeles courtroom to avoid a potential arrest on shoplifting charges.

She reportedly turned up in Los Angeles Superior Court on June 24--two weeks before production on Big Brother 6 was set to begin--to answer three bench warrants issued after she failed to show for arraignment for making like Winona Ryder.

Pierzina was busted in 2001 for swiping less than $400 worth of apparel at a Los Angeles-area Macy's, per the Smoking Gun. However instead of entering her plea at a December hearing, the buxom blonde skipped out, forcing the judge to issue a warrant for her arrest. When she failed to show six months later, the judge issued a second warrant, then a third in April 2004, raising the bond to $30,000.

When Pierzina finally graced the court with her presence last month, she pleaded guilty to petty theft and was ordered to pay a $982 fine and barred from coming within 100 yards of a Macy's outlet.

The aspiring reality star has made missing court dates her modus operandi.

Pierzina was also nabbed in 2000 for drunken driving in Duluth, Minnesota. And not surprisingly, she was MIA at a February 2001 arraignment for that charge, leading to her first bench warrant.

She pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor DWI in June 2002 and was sentenced to a 60-day suspended term, a year's probation, a $1,000 fine and an alcohol-education program. After failing to finish the course, the judge in that case scheduled a probation violation hearing which--yes--she never attended.

Another bench warrant was issued. After finally giving herself up on June 30, 2004, she had her probation extended by six months and once again was remanded her to booze school, which she completed finally in North Carolina before taking up residence in Miami Beach.

A rep for CBS declined to comment on the report. Producers have previously defended some controversial choices for the reality show.

Big Brother 2's Justin Sebik held a knife to the throat of a female housemate during a drunken flirtation, embarrassing producers whose background checks failed to reveal Sebik had been arrested three times for assault and twice for minor robberies.

Others with a checkered past included three other Big Brother 2 participants: Shannon Dragoo, who hit and killed an elderly man and pleaded guilty to a careless driving charge; Michael "Mike Boogie" Malin, who did probation for trespassing and using a fake ID; and Hardy Hill, who was hit with DUI charges and received probation, a suspended license and community service. Meanwhile, Big Brother 3 contestant Chiara Berti was busted for drunken driving, pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor DUI and was sentenced to three years' probation, ordered to pay a fine and sent to an alcohol-awareness program.

While ratings are down from last season, Big Brother 6 remains a big draw on CBS' summer schedule. Last week, the Thursday edition ranked among Nielsen's 10 most watched shows, with 8.3 million viewers, and both the Tuesday and Thursday episodes ranked in the top five in the key 18-49 demo.

Either Pierzina or Michael Donnellan will be evicted on tonight's episode.