National Roundup

Ohio
Judge orders treatment for man fixated on belly buttons

AKRON, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio judge has extended the probation of an autistic man who fixates on belly buttons, ordering him to attend an in-patient treatment program for sexual offenders.

Graig Burrier pleaded guilty to sexual battery in 2012 and received probation for attacking a 19-year-old pregnant woman in a stairwell and insisting he had to touch her belly button to pledge a fraternity. Authorities say he has continued asking to touch women’s belly buttons during his probation.

The Akron Beacon Journal reports Summit County prosecutors had pushed to send the 29-year-old from Stow to prison for violating probation.

Judge Mary Margaret Rowlands extended Burrier’s probation Thursday by ordering him to attend a residential program in Minnesota followed by supervision at a halfway house there.

Burrier’s attorney says Rowlands’ decision makes “perfect sense.”

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Indiana
Lawn-mowing man enters plea in neighbor shooting spat

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — An Indianapolis-area man who was wounded when an argument with a neighbor escalated into across-the-fence gunfire has pleaded guilty in the case.

The Johnson County prosecutor’s office in July charged Jeffrey S. Weigle with criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon. He pleaded guilty Thursday in an agreement with prosecutors, and a judge gave him credit for about six months already served in jail. He was released on Thursday night.

Video shows the two trading insults on their properties in Greenwood on June 27 before Weigle — apparently riding a lawnmower — pulls out a handgun.

The video then shows Indianapolis firefighter Dean Keller fire his gun and Weigle returning fire. Weigle suffered a chest wound. Keller wasn’t injured.

Prosecutors earlier determined Keller acted in self-defense and wouldn’t be charged.

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Hawaii
Man sentenced in sex assault of disabled woman

HILO, Hawaii (AP) — A former Hilo driver was sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading no contest to allegations that he sexually assaulted a disabled woman.

Louis Sardis, 65, was a driver for the nonprofit organization The Arc of Hilo, which works with individuals who have developmental or other disabilities.

Two witnesses told police that they saw Louis Sardis assaulting the woman last year in the van owned by the nonprofit.

Deputy Prosecutor Kimberly Angay said Sardis initially confessed to the attack but has since changed his story.

Sardis was sentenced Wednesday after pleading no contest in October to two counts of first-degree sexual assault, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported.

The woman’s sister told the judge that Sardis’ actions impacted their family.

“My mom and dad and I . have trouble sleeping at night. My mom has basically gone into a state of depression,” the victim’s sister said. “I feel the sentence the defendant is getting is, basically, letting him off easy, as opposed to what my family is going through.”

Sardis, who is originally from Chuuk in the Federated States of Micronesia, apologized in court.

The victim’s parents filed suit in September against Sardis and The Arc of Hilo, seeking unspecified monetary damages and changes made in the way the nonprofit organization transports and supervises clients.

The Arc of Hilo filed a motion in November seeking dismissal of the civil complaint.

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Ohio
Lawyer: Man thought host directed him to kill mother

AKRON, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio man who reportedly believed “Wheel of Fortune” host Pat Sajak instructed him to kill his elderly mother has been found not guilty by reason of insanity.

The Akron Beacon Journal reports that a judge made the ruling Thursday in the murder case against 48-year-old Derrick Williams.

Defense attorney Brian Pierce says the Williams believed he was getting messages from the TV game show when he heard his hometown mentioned. He thought Sajak was telling him to kill his mother when Sajak said, “Do it.”

Pierce says Williams was off his medication and “clearly was psychotic.”

Williams’ sister called 911 after discovering her mother’s body in December 2016 and told dispatchers her brother was mentally ill and likely responsible.

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Nebraska
White supremacist faces terror charge after train stopped

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A white supremacist accused of stopping an Amtrak train in Nebraska has been charged with terrorism.

Documents unsealed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Lincoln show 26-year-old Taylor Wilson, of St. Charles, Missouri, is charged with terrorism attacks and other violence against railroad carriers and mass transportation systems.

The eastbound train with about 175 people aboard halted early Oct. 22 in Oxford, Nebraska, about 200 miles (320 kilometers) southwest of Omaha. Court documents say a Furnas County deputy sent to the scene found Amtrak employees holding Wilson. The deputy says Wilson had a loaded revolver, plus more ammunition and a knife.

The court documents show the FBI has evidence of Wilson’s activities with white supremacist groups.

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Utah
Man breaks into evidence room, steals back bike

PROVO, Utah (AP) — Provo police say a man broke into the department’s evidence room undetected and took back his bike.

Deseret News reported Thursday that the burglary went unnoticed until the person who originally was found with the bike was arrested again and told officers David Elwin Snow was bragging that he “pulled off the crime of the century.”

The 37-year-old Snow and his brother had gone to the department on Dec. 18 to retrieve the bike, but since they never reported it stolen they had a hard time verifying it was Snow’s bike. Police accuse Snow of stealing it that same night after seeing where it was being stored.
The bike was found Wednesday at Snow’s grandmother’s house.

Police Sgt. Nisha King said such a heist has never happened at the department.