AUBURN - A Moravia man said he did not remember threatening his wife with a handgun, but he accepted the facts investigators had gathered about and pleaded guilty to the felony of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon in exchange for a sentencing commitment of three to six years in state prison.

Richard Bausano, 47, of 3 Abrio Drive, Moravia, pleaded guilty in Cayuga County Court Thursday under an Alford plea, in which a defendant does not admit the exact events of the crime but does not contest the crime was committed. He is being held in the Cayuga County Jail.

Bausano was halting during his allocution to the crime, including needing to withdraw from the courtroom with his attorney at one point to discuss his plea.

Bausano, who has been on disability, told Judge Thomas Leone he needed to explain the big picture. But Leone told Bausano he did not need the big picture to accept his plea - only whether he had committed a crime.

Bausano admitted he possessed a loaded pistol and displayed it to his wife April 4. He said they had argued, but he said there was no physical contact.

“I need you to tell me that if you were in your wife's place that you would have felt threatened with a loaded gun in the home in the middle of a verbal argument,” Leone said. Bausano said he did not remember half of the night.

Chief Assistant District Attorney Jon Budelmann said Bausano threatened to blow his wife's brains out. Bausano was previously convicted in Orange County in 1997 of a felony.

His sentencing is scheduled for 8 a.m. July 12.

Also in court:

€ A bench warrant was issued for the arrest of Angelo Amodei, 41, of 20 Fietta Lane, Weedsport, after Amodei failed to appear for his arraignment on two felony counts of driving while intoxicated, the misdemeanor of second-degree aggravated unlicensed operation and the vehicle infractions of drinking alcohol in a motor vehicle, speeding and failure to obey a police officer.

Amodei is accused of driving with a .14 blood alcohol count around 1:33 a.m. April 29, on East Brutus Street, Weedsport, and ignoring a Weedsport village police officer's red flashing lights and siren.

€ Thomas Anderson, 43, of Utica, pleaded guilty to the felony of fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property. Anderson admitted possessing a stolen 32-inch, flat-panel Sharp LCD television, DVD recorder and three paintball sets from Wal-Mart in Auburn worth $1,577. Sentencing was scheduled for 8:30 a.m. July 26.

Anderson's codefendant Daniel P. Pace has pleaded guilty to related charges and codefendant Raina Dinger still has her case pending.

€ Randy Grader, 28, with a last known address of 15 Franklin St., Auburn, of was sentenced to four months of weekends in the Cayuga County Jail and five years probation for the felony of fifth-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance. Grader's previous guilty plea to selling crack Dec. 15, 2006, satisfied the charge he sold false crack as a means of recouping money that police said Eugenia N. Morris, 27. of 84 Wall St., Auburn, and her boyfriend owed him for previous crack sales.

Morris still faces the misdemeanors of third-degree falsely reporting and false written statement. She is accused of fabricating a story that she was pushed from Grader's pickup truck after he stole $50 cash from her. Instead, police allege Morris jumped from Grader's vehicle after the two argued over the fraudulent crack.

“I'm truly sorry for causing such a disturbance in the community,” Grander said. Grader's attorney, Simon Moody, said he had entered drug treatment and secured employment. Grader added he had moved to the country and was trying hard to be a family man.

€ Jamel Person, 26, of Apt. 133, 20 Thornton Ave., and currently held in Cayuga County Jail, entered a not guilty plea to the felony charges of first-degree attempted assault, third-degree criminal possession of a weapon and three counts of third-degree criminal mischief and the misdemeanors of third-degree unlawfully fleeing a police officer, reckless driving and resisting arrest and two traffic infractions of failure to stop at a stop sign.

Person is accused of coming close to hitting a police officer with his car while fleeing a traffic stop around 4:45 p.m. April 19; ramming three police cars boxing him into the police stop; and driving recklessly and failing to stop at stop signs while fleeing police.

Person's brother, Antonio, was wanted in North Carolina on charges he tried to stab his estranged girlfriend to death. Police initially thought Person was Antonio and tried to stop him. Person and his brother were both eventually captured within city limits.

Motions are scheduled to be heard 8:30 a.m. July 26.

€ Omar Smith, 28, with a last known address of 420 Kirkpatrick St., Syracuse, and currently held in the Cayuga County Jail, rejected a plea bargain offer and complained of his assigned counsel, Norm Chirco.

“I don't feel safe or connected with him representing me,” Smith said. Smith said he wanted to be sentenced to drug programs within the state prison system.

Leone told Smith many pretrial conferences had been held in his case, that he was startled Smith was not taking the most recent offer and that Chirco had been more than an effective attorney. But he allowed Smith to change attorneys for which Smith thanked the judge.

Smith faces three felony drug charges. He is accused of selling crack cocaine in June.

Staff writer Amaris Elliott-Engel can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 282 or at amaris.elliot-engel@lee.net