Toledoan gets probation in elderly woman’s assault

2/19/2014

While holding a three-year prison sentence over his head, a Lucas County Common Pleas judge Tuesday placed a Toledo man on community control for five years for pushing his way into an elderly woman’s house, assaulting her, and rifling through her home.

Eric Richardson, 37, of 819 Euclid Ave. pleaded guilty Feb. 3 to one count of burglary for the April 7, 2012, incident with the understanding he would receive community control rather than a prison sentence.

Richardson, who appeared in court with his attorney, Keith Mitchell, had been indicted for felonious assault, aggravated burglary, aggravated robbery, and theft from an elderly person for forcing his way into a South Avenue home, striking the elderly resident in the face, and knocking her to the floor before going through her home looking for things to steal.

Judge Franks noted that she had accepted a plea agreement in the case only because the elderly victim was not physically able to come to court to testify as she had after the crimes occurred in 2012.

“Mr. Richardson, had you gone to trial on these matters and been convicted based upon what this lovely woman testified to and the violence that was perpetrated, you would not have been a candidate for community control,” the judge told him.

She warned him repeatedly that if he violated just one component of his probation he would go to prison for three years.

As part of his community control, Judge Franks ordered that he spend nine months on electronic monitoring, that he ingest no alcohol or drugs, that he undergo drug testing three times a week, that he be evaluated by Court Diagnostic and Treatment Center and complete all treatment recommendations, and that he enroll in a drug treatment program.

“You will attend every class. We’ll be calling weekly,” she said. “We’re going to watch, and if you don’t attend, you don’t feel like getting up, then you should get up in prison.”

Richardson, who had been held in the Lucas County jail, also was ordered to have no contact with the victim.

Contact Jennifer Feehan at: jfeehan@theblade.com or 419-213-2134.