A man sentenced Thursday to three years in jail suspended for probation with credit for time served just wants to get back to his home state of Tennessee.

Under a plea agreement with the Kosciusko County Prosecutor’s Office, Sloan J. White Jr., 35, formerly of Warsaw, pleaded guilty March 22 to one count of intimidation, a level 5 felony, with a charge of pointing a firearm, a level 6 felony, being dismissed.

Superior Court I Judge David Cates accepted the plea and found White guilty of intimidation Thursday. Cates sentenced White to three years in the Kosciusko County Jail suspended on probation. He also gave him 329 days of credit for time served.

Cates said the standard rules of probation rules apply and White must pay the user fees, but his probation may be transferred to Tennessee. White must get and maintain employment and have no contact with his victim. “Any contact may result in revocation of that suspended sentence,” Cates said.

He must go to the Bowen Center for an assessment and follow that up with whatever the Bowen Center recommends at his expense. He may not possess a firearm and reimburse the county $300 for legal counsel, as well as pay other fees. The rifle he had must be turned over to Warsaw Police Department.

On May 18, 2017, WPD officer Clay A. Layne met with White’s victim who said she had been in a five-year relationship with White, according to court documents filed May 22, 2017. She said White was being investigated for a molestation.

On May 15, 2017, she said the Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department came to her residence, where White had an AR 15 rifle and was threatening to harm himself. Officers confiscated the gun and took White to the Bowen Center for treatment.

On Feb. 16, 2017, the victim said, she and White were at her apartment when she confronted him about the molestation accusations. White went to the bedroom and came back with the AR 15 rifle and loaded it with ammunition, placing the muzzle under his chin and threatening to kill himself. The victim attempted to call 911 when White walked toward her and pointed the loaded rifle at her face for about two minutes, telling her to put the phone down. The victim feared for her life. White paced around and said he was going to save them all the misery. White was on the phone with a friend who heard part of the incident and begged White not to kill himself.

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At the sentencing Thursday, White’s defense attorney, Joseph A. Sobek, asked White why he was released early from jail.

White said he was released early because a blood clot formed behind his knee in his main artery. Because of the clot,  he had an excess build-up of fluid. He had to have a tube put in his legs to remove the excess fluid. He is on blood thinners and supplements and has a follow-up with a doctor next week.

White told Sobek that he was originally from Tennessee and came to Kosciusko County to be with the victim. His plans are to get a job, save some money and move back to Tennessee, but that will take a few months. He lives in Fort Wayne and is hoping to get his job back in Columbia City.

Chief Deputy Prosecutor Brad Voelz said White was released early April 19, three weeks ago, and asked why he hasn’t gotten a job in that time. White said he’s been in the hospital.

In his comments to Cates, Voelz said White has a criminal history and by February 2017 he had a lot of troubles to the extent that he reached a point where he contemplated killing himself. For that, he said, White needed help. But then he pointed a loaded gun at the one person who was trying to help him. “For that, he needs punished,” Voelz said.

Sobek said White knows there’s a no-contact order with the victim and he will continue to abide by that order. He said White was remorseful and just wants to take care of his health issues and eventually move back to Tennessee.