COURT Appeal leads to added jail time

Without the appeal, Jerome Christian would have finished his one-year term and been released.
YOUNGSTOWN -- A man's appeal of a one-year prison sentence from a Mahoning County Common Pleas Court judge has earned him even more jail time.
Judge R. Scott Krichbaum sentenced Jerome Christian Sr. on Tuesday to a total of 18 months in jail on five counts of receiving stolen property. Christian says he will appeal the sentence again.
The resentencing hearing resulted from a successful appeal of the original sentence handed down April 8, 2004.
Judge Krichbaum sentenced Christian to one year on each of five counts of receiving stolen property and ordered him to make restitution of $240 to the victim.
Because he didn't specifically say the charges were to run consecutively, state law holds the time would run concurrently, the judge said.
Judge Krichbaum said that the one-year terms were the maximum punishment for the crimes, given because he felt that Christian was likely to commit more crimes.
The 7th District Court of Appeals, however, reversed the sentence last week, saying the judge failed to consider statutory factors for imposing maximum sentences, and he also failed to specify whether the prison terms were to be served concurrently or consecutively.
The court sent the case back to common pleas court for resentencing.
At Tuesday's hearing, the judge told Christian he never intended to give him consecutive sentences a year ago, and in fact a deal for probation was available had Christian made the $240 restitution.
His rationale for not paying
Christian explained he couldn't make restitution because his mother had suffered a mild heart attack, and he and his brother had to use their money to get their mother the medicine she needed.
Judge Krichbaum said he continued the case twice to allow Christian to make restitution and he failed to do so.
The appellate court granted Christian a bond to get out of prison pending his appeal of Judge Krichbaum's original sentence. He was released Sept. 3, 2004.
On Sept. 16, 2004, however, Youngstown police arrested and charged him with breaking into a vacant home on the city's East Side. A municipal court judge sentenced him to six months in county jail. Christian completed that sentence in March.
Had Christian not appealed his original sentence, he would have completed his one-year prison term last month and been released.
The new sentence calls for:
UConcurrent six-month prison terms on the first two receiving-stolen-property charges.
UConcurrent six-month prison terms on the other two receiving-stolen-property charges to be served consecutively with the first two charges.
UA six-month term on the fifth charge to be served consecutively with the other charges.
Upon his release, he will be on probation for three years.
Christian said he would appeal his sentence again. He has 30 days to file a notice with the appellate court.