YOUNGSTOWN Robber seeks forgiveness, gets 8-year term in prison

A second teenager will be sentenced next month.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- William Seawood said he was sorry for robbing people with toy guns, and wants forgiveness.
"Forgiveness is something you'll have to talk to the Lord about," said Judge R. Scott Krichbaum of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court. "This is a court of law. It's not in my power to grant you forgiveness."
Then the judge sentenced Seawood to eight years in prison, prompting the 19-year-old Campbell man to shake his head in disbelief. Seawood sobbed as deputies led him out of the courtroom in handcuffs.
Seawood pleaded guilty in June to four counts of robbery, which had been reduced from the original charges of aggravated robbery.
Brian Rodriguez, 18, also of Campbell, pleaded guilty to the same charges and was also to have been sentenced Friday. His sentencing was delayed, though, because his lawyer was in court in another county. It was rescheduled for Aug. 7.
"They staged two robberies with a cap gun and a water pistol," said Seawood's lawyer, Albert Palombaro. Even though the guns were toys, the victims were "impressed with fright and fear," Palombaro said, adding Seawood regrets the pain he caused.
Crimes
Assistant Prosecutor Patrick R. Pochiro said the men, along with a 15-year-old boy, robbed a Brier Hill Pizza Shop deliveryman March 14 in the driveway of a Reed Avenue home. They held the fake guns to the man's head, ordered him to the ground and stole about $30, a cellular telephone and some pizzas from him.
Two days later, they robbed a barmaid and three patrons at Chick's Place, a bar on Robinson Road, getting away with about $20. Again, they used toy guns that appeared to be real.
"These are the kinds of things that have to be stopped," Judge Krichbaum said. "Anybody who thinks they can get away with this kind of thing had better think again."
The juvenile's case is pending in juvenile court.