The Sad Life Of The Brisket Bandit

Michael Brick: AUSTIN – The man behind the glass partition was famous. His photograph appeared on statewide news sites and national food blogs, wanted as the architect of a brazen scheme.

When officials requested public assistance in his capture last year, they accused him of stealing thousands of dollars worth of meat from at least 19 grocery stores. He most likely devised an ad-hoc black market, police said, among the legitimate middlemen who connect ranchers to trendy steakhouses and barbecue pits.

His name is James Cordell Avery. Headline writers called him the Brisket Bandit.

In an interview at the Travis County Correctional Complex, Avery slurred through the telephone. He looked…