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Man gets probation, fine for Alford plea
The prosecutor called for prison time for the man who maintains his innocence.
YOUNGSTOWN — A 21-year-old Detroit Avenue man who pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of robbery has been sentenced to four years’ probation and fined $500.
Christopher Williams drew the sentence Monday from Judge Maureen A. Sweeney, of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, who had earlier dismissed the case because she believed time had expired for Williams to be brought to trial.
Williams was accused of using a gun to rob an 80-year-old West Side man of his keys and cellular phone Dec. 28, 2006, as the victim was leaving a Zedaker Street residence.
Although Judge Sweeney had dismissed the case, the 7th District Court of Appeals sent the matter back to her, and she eventually ruled that both the prosecution and defense were responsible for delaying the case because they failed to properly share evidence.
Williams’ Dec. 1 plea was an Alford plea — in which he pleaded guilty but was allowed to maintain his innocence.
Robert J. Andrews, assistant county prosecutor, called for a prison term, but he didn’t specify how long he thought it should be. Under the reduced charge, the judge could have sent Williams to prison for one to five years.
As Williams was originally charged, the sentencing range would have been three to 10 years for the aggravated robbery, plus a mandatory consecutive three years for the gun specification, for a total available range of six to 13 years in prison.
When Williams pleaded guilty to the reduced robbery charge, the prosecution dropped the gun specification.
Williams’ lawyer, Lynn Maro, called for probation, saying her client is employed and has been trouble-free since his October 2007 release from Mahoning County jail, where he had been held for more than 10 months.
Maro said telephone records show Williams was home using the telephone around the time when the robbery was reported and that findings of gunshot residue on his hands likely resulted from the gun’s having been fired two days earlier or from a false positive result triggered by cleaning chemicals Williams had used on his job.
Williams entered his plea to avoid the risk of a jury trial, Maro said.
“I’m not a bad person ... I was just caught in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Williams told the judge just before she sentenced him.
Judge Sweeney told Williams he must obtain his GED within one year, he must not leave Ohio without his probation officer’s permission, and he is to have no contact with the victim.
Any probation violation could result in his going to prison for up to five years, the judge warned Williams.