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Man with lengthy record sent to prison
By Joe Gorman
YOUNGSTOWN
Thomas Cappitti is getting a refresher course, but it is not the type of class most people would like to retake.
That’s because the class was assigned by a Mahoning County Common Pleas Court judge who sentenced the 40-year-old Cappitti, of Oak Leigh Drive in Austintown, to at least a year in prison Tuesday on charges of breaking and entering and possession of criminal tools, both fifth-degree felonies.
Judge Lou D’Apolito said he thinks Cappitti deserved prison because of his previous record, which shows 15 cases, including felonies and misdemeanors, in the Mahoning County court system alone since 1997. Cappitti served a brief prison sentence in 2004 but the judge said he thinks Cappitti needs to return so he can get some motivation to stay off drugs, which fueled his crimes.
“Maybe you need a refresher course,” Judge D’Apolito said.
Judge D’Apolito said he was also concerned about safety – Cappitti’s or someone else’s.
“You’re lucky you haven’t been shot and killed in one of these burglaries or trespasses or thefts,” Judge D’Apolito said.
Cappitti was being sentenced for an October burglary in which he was caught almost right away, said Assistant Prosecutor Shawn Burns.
Cappitti also just cleared up a case he had pending in Girard Municipal Court and also has an active case from Youngstown Municipal Court, said his attorney, Donna McCollum. In fact, she said he may have other cases pending but he cannot remember them all, she said.
“Obviously because of his drug use in the past, he wasn’t even aware of who was looking for him,” McCollum said.
Burns said almost all of Cappitti’s prior crimes are drug, burglary or theft offenses. Burns asked for some sort of incarceration because of Cappitti’s prior record.
Cappitti told the judge he has been off drugs for seven months and wants to clear up all his past court cases. Cappitti said he is getting tired of what drugs do to him.
“I’m turning 40 – I’m just too old,” Cappitti said. “I’m down. I’m just trying to clean everything up.”
Judge D’Apolito said he thought that the previous prison sentence Cappitti served in 2004 would have scared him off drugs altogether.
“I would think prison would be a wake-up call,” Judge D’Apolito said.
Judge D’Apolito said he would consider a request for judicial release, but he wants to know how Cappitti will keep himself off drugs after the threat of any prison time is over.