Conveying forgiveness from victims is something not usually done during sentencing of defendants.

But that's what Deputy Prosecutor Chuck Waggoner did Tuesday when the third of five suspects in the "Amish basing" cases was in Kosciusko Superior Court.

The victims in the case asked Waggoner to tell the suspects that they were forgiven. Waggoner told the court the victims' statement was "very different" and something he had never done before. He also pointed out that while the focus during sentencing is on the defendant, he felt that it was his duty to remind the court of the victims who were "sought out for harm."

Erik L. Stevenson, 19, of Nappanee, was one of three defendants in the case who chose to enter into a plea agreement through which he was sentenced to six years in prison, of which two years were suspended for probation. He must also perform 500 hours of community service.

The same agreement was reached with William R. Neiswender, 18, and Roger F. Briscoe, 23, both of Nappanee. They were both sentenced last month.

Stevenson, Neiswender and Briscoe, along with Jennifer Krull, 21, of Nappanee, and Jonathan R. Pickerl, 18, of South Bend, were arrested in February after several attacks on the Amish were reported to police.

The five were accused of robbing Amish men after knocking them from their bicycles.

As a part of Neiswender's and Briscoe's plea agreements, they were required to make a public apology for their actions. Stevenson's court-appointed attorney, Jane Kauffman, noted to the court that her client sent a letter of apology to the victim "long before the plea agreement was entered into," and that he also wrote a letter to the court acknowledging his remorse and wrongdoing.

Speaking on his own behalf, Stevenson said, "(I am) truly sorry for what I've done ... I'm ashamed of the life I've had and what I've done." He added: "This is an experience I've learned from and I never want to go through again ... I would like to make my life better."

Following the disposition of the case, Judge Robert Burner told Stevenson that he hopes he has learned a lesson. "This has not been a bad deal for you," Burner said of the sentence. "If you've learned what you tell me you've learned, we won't be in this courtroom again ... (but) we won't know that till you get out."

With good behavior, Stevenson will have to serve only two years of the four-year incarceration period. He has already completed 187 days of that term while the case was pending because he was unable to post the $50,000 bond.

As he did with the other defendants already sentenced in the case, Burner pointed out to Stevenson that the victims could have suffered more serious injuries than they did.

The five accused in the case apparently targeted Amish men as they rode their bicycles along country roads, drove alongside them and struck them with a tire iron to knock them to the ground. The men were then robbed of their wallets. One of the incidents resulted in a victim suffering a broken collarbone, which was the most serious injury reported.

As part of Stevenson's plea agreement, charges of theft and conspiracy to commit theft, both Class D felonies, and conspiracy to commit armed robbery, a Class B felony, were dismissed. He was ordered to pay court costs, the cost of his court-appointed attorney and probation fees.

The fourth defendant, Pickerl, will be sentenced at 1 p.m. Friday, and sentencing for the final suspect, Krull, will be at 3:30 p.m. Aug. 22. Pickerl and Krull opted not to sign a plea agreement and pleaded straight up to the charges against them. This leaves the sentencing terms to the discretion of the judge. [[In-content Ad]]