Latest news with #pleadeal
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Rock Falls man sent to prison for 10 years in 2021 shooting
May 31—MORRISON — A Rock Falls man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for a 2021 shooting that injured another man and damaged a Rock Falls home. Alexander Vinson-Ishmon, 24, pleaded guilty Wednesday, May 28, to one count each of using a stolen firearm and reckless discharge of a firearm. He was sentenced to seven years in prison on the stolen firearm charge, and when he completes that sentence, he will serve three years in prison for the reckless discharge count. Charges of aggravated battery and aggravated discharge of a firearm — the two charges originally filed against Vinson-Ishmon in 2021 — were dismissed as part of a plea deal. The trial information with those two charges was amended May 27 to add the two charges to which he pleaded guilty the next day. Vinson-Ishmon was given credit for 499 days served. The sentence for using a stolen firearm will be served concurrently with a seven-year prison sentence for a related case in Lee County. In that case, Vinson-Ishmon pleaded guilty in November 2023 to felony possession of a stolen firearm and was sentenced in January 2024. One count each of armed violence, delivery of cannabis, possessing a firearm without a valid firearm owner's identification card, illegal possession of ammunition and possession of cannabis were dismissed as part of a plea agreement. The case According to the Whiteside County charging document, the events began to unfold shortly before 6:30 a.m. March 21, 2021, when a Rock Falls police officer was driving in the 600 block of West Second Street and saw a man who appeared to be trying to break into a home. The officer went to the house and, although the man was gone, she noted damage to two windows and a door. She also found a phone lying on the ground nearby, according to the document. Vinson-Ishmon lived at the residence, according to the document. About 7:30 a.m. the same day, Rock Falls police officers responded to the 300 block of Sixth Avenue, where they found evidence of a shooting in the alley between Sixth and Seventh avenues and a home struck by at least one bullet, according to the document. About that same time, a 21-year-old man who lived in the area and had been shot — and whose phone was the one found next to the home with the broken windows and door — walked into the police department to report the incident. He was taken to CGH Medical Center for the treatment of superficial gunshot wounds, according to the document. Rock Falls police then issued an arrest warrant for Vinson-Ishmon for aggravated discharge of a firearm in connection with the man's wounds. Vinson-Ishmon was taken into custody in Dixon three days after the shooting. According to a Dixon Police Department news release issued at the time, Dixon police received information from the Rock Falls Police Department that Vinson-Ishmon was wanted on a valid arrest warrant regarding the Rock Falls shooting. Dixon officers checked numerous locations in Dixon and subsequently found Vinson-Ishmon's vehicle at a residence in the 800 block of East Graham Street, police said. About 4:40 p.m. March 24, 2021, surveillance officers observed Vinson-Ishmon exit a residence in the 800 block of East Graham Street and enter a vehicle parked at that location. Police conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle in the 800 block of East Graham Street, and Vinson-Ishmon was taken into custody without incident. During a search of the vehicle, officers found a loaded handgun, a large amount of U.S. currency and cannabis, according to the release. A check of the firearm's serial number revealed that the firearm was reported stolen from a residence in Lee County in early 2020. Vinson-Ishmon was turned over to the Lee County Jail. It is the plea deal in this case that landed him the seven-year sentence to be served concurrently with the Whiteside County seven-year prison sentence. The plea deal accepted Wednesday comes a little over two months after Whiteside County Circuit Court Judge James Heuerman rejected an earlier proposed plea deal in the case. Under that agreement, Vinson-Ishmon was ready to plead guilty to one count of aggravated battery with a firearm, which would have sent him to prison for up to six years and would be served concurrently with his sentence for the Lee County weapons case. However, Heuerman refused to accept the terms of the plea agreement in the Rock Falls case based on the danger that the fired shots posed to others in the area at the time. Heuerman said that he would not accept that agreement because although the victim's wounds were superficial, gunfire that damaged the door of a nearby house indicated that others had faced danger and a risk of injury.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Jacob Meisner: No plea deal reached for Preston Lord murder suspect
The Brief There is a new twist in the Preston Lord murder case, as one of the suspects in the case has turned down a plea deal. Jacob Meisner faces a potential life sentence with parole after 25 years if convicted of first-degree murder. PHOENIX - New developments have emerged in the Preston Lord murder case. One of the seven suspects accused of killing the East Valley teen turned down a plea deal, leaving that case in legal limbo. In court on May 30, Judge Fish explained to defendant Jacob Meisner how high the stakes are. What we know He started with the prison time the 18-year-old could face if found guilty by a jury of the first-degree murder charge alone. "It is life with the possibility of release after 25 years," Judge Fish said. Meisner and several other teens are accused of kidnapping 16-year-old Preston Lord and causing his death. Because he's charged with felony murder, Judge Fish also explained what that would mean in a trial. "The state doesn't have to get up and prove that you laid a hand on Mr. Lord at all," the judge stated. "All they have to do is prove that you participated in the kidnapping of Mr. Lord." Still, his defense attorney argued the level of Meisner's culpability should be considered in a plea agreement. What they're saying "It doesn't matter in terms of whether or not he actually physically got hands on with Preston Lord whether the state can prove his liability under a Felony Murder Rule," the attorney said. "But that question is relevant in determining what a proper and just sentence is in terms of a plea deal." The backstory Lord was brutally beaten at a 2023 Queen Creek Halloween party and later died from his injuries. His death sparked outrage and a demand for local officials to address increased teen violence in the East Valley, including a group dubbed the "Gilbert Goons." Earlier this year, Owen Hines was the first of the seven defendants to accept a plea deal, agreeing to serve more than 12 years behind bars. While speaking to reporters, Meisner's attorney said negotiations with the state will continue but remained tight-lipped about anything else. "We are not making any statements about the facts at this time," the attorney said. What's next The Stillery in Chandler is hosting an event to celebrate the passing of Preston's Law, and his legacy. May 31, 2 p.m. - 5 p.m. The Stillery (Downtown Chandler) 130 S Arizona Ave. Chandler, AZ 85225
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Schofield soldier to plead guilty in wife's presumed death
A Schofield Barracks soldier, whose 19-year-old pregnant, Hawaii-born wife disappeared in July and is presumed dead, has negotiated a plea deal with the U.S. Army Office of Special Trial Counsel. Pfc. Dewayne Arthur Johnson II is expected to plead guilty when he is scheduled to appear for a hearing set for Tuesday through Thursday at Wheeler Army Airfield Courtroom, but the Army Office of Special Trial Counsel said Thursday it was not disclosing what those charges are at this time. 'PFC Johnson has agreed to plead guilty, however further details are not releasable at this time as the guilty plea is subject to acceptance by the military judge, ' Michelle McCaskill, spokeswoman for the Army Office of Special Trial Counsel, said. If his guilty plea is accepted, the judge will sentence him pursuant to the terms of the plea agreement during the sentencing hearing, she added. On Feb. 12 the office referred five charges and 19 specifications against Johnson stemming from the disappearance of his wife, Mischa Johnson, according to a news release issued by U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii. 'Mischa Johnson is presumed deceased and her body has not been found, ' the release said. 'The general nature of the charges are for the murder of Mischa Johnson, intentionally killing her unborn child, obstruction of justice, providing false statements, possession of child pornography and the production and distribution of child pornography, ' the release continued. Once the charges were referred, the case was assigned to a military judge, who set dates for the arraignment, pretrial hearings and the trial. According to the Army's eDocket system, Johnson faces a general court-martial, the military's highest court level, and the General Court-Martial Convening Authority is the 25th Infantry Division. Johnson, who was 28 at the time of his wife's disappearance, was arraigned Feb. 20, waived his right to a preliminary hearing and had been scheduled for trial Oct. 2. Mischa Mabeline Kaalohilani Johnson, who was six months pregnant, last spoke to her family July 12. The 19-year-old was born and raised on Oahu and grew up in Ewa Beach. She had been missing since July 31. The Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation into her disappearance, and in August the case was treated as a murder investigation. Mischa Johnson's family said the investigators had been looking into Dewayne Johnson's alleged extramarital sexual relationships with several local teenage girls, and producing and distributing pornographic material depicting minors. Johnson, who is from Frederick, Md., joined the Army in 2022 and was assigned in June 2023 to the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks as a cavalry scout.
CBS News
3 days ago
- General
- CBS News
President Trump says undocumented, unlicensed teen driver will be deported after deadly crash in Aurora
A teenager who was driving illegally and was in the country illegally when he struck and killed a young Colorado woman in Aurora is now in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Kaitlyn Weaver John Weaver The driver, who was 15 years old at the time of the crash, pleaded guilty to a felony in the death of 24-year-old Kaitlyn Weaver. Investigators say he was doing 90 miles per hour in a 45 mile per hour zone when he plowed into her car. Weaver's parents spoke exclusively to Your Reporter Shaun Boyd after the 18th Judicial District Attorney's Office offered the teen a plea deal that included no jail time. The story went viral, prompting outrage. "I had people from New York, from Nevada and people up in the Pacific Northwest all hear about it," John Weaver said. "We've been shocked at how much love and support (there's been) all across the country." The prosecutor charged the teen with vehicular homicide -- which carries a maximum sentence of two years in youth corrections -- but offered him two years' probation and 100 hours of community service if he pleaded guilty. CBS "I do feel that the criminal justice system in this state let my daughter down and it certainly is going to do nothing to prevent it from happening again," said Weaver. He says the prosecutor in the case initially said there would be no plea deal then reversed course under new District Attorney Amy Padden. Assistant D.A. Ryan Brackley says the new administration had no direct involvement in the plea deal. Weaver thought the teen got away with murder until this week when he saw a social media post by ICE in Denver saying agents arrested the teen and his family. ICE says they are from Columbia and were in the country illegally. The post linked to the CBS Colorado story and said, "For the @DA18th justice is no jail time and probation... For ICE, justice is arrest and removal." President Donald Trump also posted about the arrest on social media, saying the family will be deported. Weaver isn't sure what his daughter would want for her killer. "I really struggle with that. She cared for everyone, and I mean everyone," he said. CBS Colorado's Shaun Boyd interviews John Weaver. CBS He says he used to think immigration issues were simply black and white situations. "And it's not, because when you're a recipient of these events it becomes all kinds of gray," Weaver said. Still, he says deportation is more justice than probation. "This was an appropriate outcome. The is the appropriate outcome. You come to this country, you commit crime, you need go back to your country," Weaver said. The arrests happened a week after Rep. Gabe Evans, a Republican who represents Colorado's 8th Congressional District, took the floor of the U.S. House and suggested the crash was related to sanctuary state policies. The teen and his family are now in a detention center in Texas. Weaver says he and his wife plan to give victim statements when the case is heard in immigration court. He also plans to push for changes in Colorado's criminal justice laws.
Associated Press
5 days ago
- General
- Associated Press
A man charged in a 2013 Pennsylvania campus sex assault hires a lawyer to review possible plea deal
GETTYSBURG, Pa. (AP) — An American who was extradited from France this year to face allegations of a 2013 campus sexual assault after the accuser went public with her story hired a private lawyer to review a potential plea deal, lawyers in the case said in court Thursday. Ian Cleary, 32, of Saratoga, California, made his first in-person court appearance in Adams County, a half-mile from where the encounter occurred at Gettysburg College. A plea had been in the works, according to Assistant Public Defender Joshua Neiderhiser, who has represented Cleary since he was brought back to the U.S. However, after speaking with his parents, Cleary agreed to hire a lawyer to review the case, delaying a possible deal. 'The initial purpose of my involvement is for a second opinion,' lawyer Steve Rice told Judge Kevin Hess, who was brought in from Cumberland County because an Adams County judge was the district attorney who declined to file charges when victim Shannon Keeler first went to authorities. Keeler, in interviews with The Associated Press, described her decade-long efforts to persuade authorities to pursue charges, starting hours after Cleary, a third-year student, allegedly sneaked into her first-year dorm on the eve of winter break. She renewed the quest in 2021, after finding a series of disturbing Facebook messages from his account that said, 'So I raped you.' Keeler did not attend Thursday's hearing, but her lawyer, Andrea Levy, said she remains ready to see the case through to the end. 'It has been 11 1/2 years Shannon has waited for this defendant to make an appearance in a Gettysburg courtroom face to face with a judge in this criminal charge, so this is an important day and a step forward in the process,' Levy said. Cleary has been in custody since his arrest on minor, unrelated charges in Metz, France, in April 2024. He could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted on the sexual assault charge. He declined the opportunity to speak to the judge Thursday. Family members have declined to comment on the case, and none appeared in court for the hearing. The next hearing is set for July 17. Cleary, who grew up in Silicon Valley, left Gettysburg College after the alleged assault there and finished college near home. He then got a master's degree and worked for Tesla before moving overseas, where he spent time writing medieval fiction, according to his online posts. The AP published an investigation on the case and on the broader reluctance among prosecutors to pursue campus sex assault charges in May 2021. An indictment followed weeks later. Authorities in the U.S. and Europe had been trying to track Cleary down until his capture in France. The AP does not typically identify sexual assault victims without their permission, which Keeler has granted.
