Habitual criminal on trial pinches passage from mine (11)
I believe the answer is:
traditional
'habitual' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
I can't explain the remainder of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for traditional that I've seen before include "According to custom" , "Following accepted usage" , "Like old Spanish customs?" , "Following earlier usage" , "Following customary usage" .)