A local man was sentenced in Cayuga County Court Tuesday to six months in jail and five years probation for his participation in a Union Springs crime spree that burglarized the Be Happy Cafe, Saxton Electronics and Gillespie Chevrolet on Oct. 4.
Craig Mason, 22, of 19 Spring St., Union Springs, will also have to pay more than $21,000 in restitution as part of his plea conviction for second-degree criminal mischief, third-degree grand larceny and two counts of third-degree burglary.
Mason and his codefendant, Corey Burnett, 21, of 129 Cayuga St., Union Springs, stole food from the cafe and $75 in electrical equipment from Saxton Electronics before stealing a 2008 Chevrolet Impala from the Gillespie dealership.
Mason and Burnett both admitted to pushing the $21,227 vehicle into the Seneca River near Route 5 in Aurelius, destroying the vehicle.
Burnett pleaded guilty last month and is facing two to four years in prison when he is sentenced on June 5.
Mason's attorney, Joseph Sapio, said Mason had never been in trouble with the law before and requested that his client receive community service instead of a prison sentence.
The community service would allow Mason to continue to work and make payments towards the restitution which Sapio said was more important than serving a prison sentence.
Cayuga County Judge Mark Fandrich disagreed and said shock probation with six months in prison was appropriate considering the severity of the crimes.
Also in court:
• A local man requested that he receive mental help instead of prison when he was sentenced to 1.3 to four years shock camp eligible prison term for burglary after he stole an all terrain vehicle.
Brian Shimer, 20, of 101 Rochester St., Port Byron, said he needed therapy because the crimes he had committed were directly linked to the sexual abuse he suffered from a teacher nearly five years ago.
Fandrich said Shimer's burglary conviction would mean he had graduated from committing misdemeanors to felony crimes and Shimer's sentence needed to reflect that.
Shimer will also have to pay restitution to make repairs that occurred to the ATV after he stole it.
A restitution hearing was set to determine the monetary damage inflicted to the vehicle. Before he was sentenced, Shimer apologized to his family for disappointing them and to the victims.
• An Auburn man pleaded not guilty to two counts of criminal sale of cocaine and two counts of possessing cocaine.
Andre Murphy, 21, of 70 Fitch Ave., Auburn, is accused of selling one to three grams of cocaine to an undercover officer on Sept. 30 and Oct. 2.
Bail was set at $5,000 cash or $10,000 bond.
• Kyle Sessions, 21, of 16 Grant St., was sentenced to a 2.5 year shock camp eligible prison term for the criminal sale of a narcotic substance.
Staff writer Nate Robson can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or nathan.robson@lee.net
Mason and his codefendant, Corey Burnett, 21, of 129 Cayuga St., Union Springs, stole food from the cafe and $75 in electrical equipment from Saxton Electronics before stealing a 2008 Chevrolet Impala from the Gillespie dealership.
Mason and Burnett both admitted to pushing the $21,227 vehicle into the Seneca River near Route 5 in Aurelius, destroying the vehicle.
Burnett pleaded guilty last month and is facing two to four years in prison when he is sentenced on June 5.
Mason's attorney, Joseph Sapio, said Mason had never been in trouble with the law before and requested that his client receive community service instead of a prison sentence.
The community service would allow Mason to continue to work and make payments towards the restitution which Sapio said was more important than serving a prison sentence.
Cayuga County Judge Mark Fandrich disagreed and said shock probation with six months in prison was appropriate considering the severity of the crimes.
Also in court:
• A local man requested that he receive mental help instead of prison when he was sentenced to 1.3 to four years shock camp eligible prison term for burglary after he stole an all terrain vehicle.
Brian Shimer, 20, of 101 Rochester St., Port Byron, said he needed therapy because the crimes he had committed were directly linked to the sexual abuse he suffered from a teacher nearly five years ago.
Fandrich said Shimer's burglary conviction would mean he had graduated from committing misdemeanors to felony crimes and Shimer's sentence needed to reflect that.
Shimer will also have to pay restitution to make repairs that occurred to the ATV after he stole it.
A restitution hearing was set to determine the monetary damage inflicted to the vehicle. Before he was sentenced, Shimer apologized to his family for disappointing them and to the victims.
• An Auburn man pleaded not guilty to two counts of criminal sale of cocaine and two counts of possessing cocaine.
Andre Murphy, 21, of 70 Fitch Ave., Auburn, is accused of selling one to three grams of cocaine to an undercover officer on Sept. 30 and Oct. 2.
Bail was set at $5,000 cash or $10,000 bond.
• Kyle Sessions, 21, of 16 Grant St., was sentenced to a 2.5 year shock camp eligible prison term for the criminal sale of a narcotic substance.
Staff writer Nate Robson can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or nathan.robson@lee.net
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MIZZMOM wrote on May 14, 2008 12:16 PM: