Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Kosciusko Superior Court Judge Robert Burner handed down a 50-year prison sentence this morning to a man who admitted raping, kidnapping and robbing a Warsaw woman last July, and indicated that he may not survive incarceration.
Jeffery Blaine Flora, 24, of Warsaw, was ordered to serve 25 years of the sentence, with another 25 years suspended for probation.
Kosciusko County Prosecutor David Kolbe described Flora as a "predator" and an "uncivilized beast." He urged Burner to impose the maximum term for Flora. "He destroyed another human being," Kolbe said. "He has absolutely no regard to live in a civilized society ... He belongs in prison for the maximum sentence - 50 years, nothing less."
Flora was sentenced on four felony charges - rape while armed and criminal deviate conduct, both Class A felonies, and criminal confinement and armed robbery, both Class B felonies. Burner issued a 50-year term on each of the Class A felonies and a 20-year term for each of the Class B felonies. The terms were ordered served concurrent, in accordance with Indiana law, despite Burner's disagreement with that law. "I disagree with legislation that the terms must be concurrent, (but) I am bound by constraints," he said.
Burner pointed out that Flora's sentence was aggravated by his criminal history, including juvenile offenses, and said that Flora has "accepted no responsibility for any of the things with which you've been involved.
"If you continue to have a chip on your shoulder and an attitude toward people around you, you may not survive this," Burner said of Flora's prison term. "I don't think you're that big. I don't think you're that tough. If you want to start punching out your fellow inmates ... they're not going to put up with that Mickey Mouse ..."
Charles Davis, Flora's court-appointed attorney, argued for his client to be placed on probation after "significant incarceration."
Davis said that this offense was out of character for Flora, and that he is not the predator Kolbe says he is. "Although he has a checkered past," Davis said, "it appears that something triggered this incident."
Flora and his then-girlfriend, Lisa Marie Sammut, 21, of Livonia, Mich., were together July 22, 1995, when the woman was approached by Sammut on the city's southwest side before being tackled from behind by Flora. She was then dragged behind a house, where Sammut held her down while Flora raped her.
The victim was then forced to take the couple to her home, where the sexual attacks continued, some at knifepoint. While at the residence, Sammut gather items the couple planned to steal from her. They then took her car and made her go with them to northwest Indiana, where they discussed plans to kill her before returning to Kosciusko County.
When they instead returned her to her home, she escaped from them after the 6-1/2 hour ordeal.
Sammut was sentenced last month to 20 years in prison - with five years of the term suspended for probation - after earlier pleading guilty to a Class B felony charge of criminal confinement.
Along with her guilty plea, she had agreed to testify against Flora when his case went to trial. However, Flora pleaded guilty to all charges against him the morning the trial was slated to begin.
As part of Flora's sentence, he must repay the county the $586.25 cost of calling the jury. Additionally, he must pay $652.32 to the Indiana Sex Crimes Fund for the benefit of the victim.
