Former trooper given probation

6/10/2003

A former Ohio Highway Patrol trooper who fired a handgun near the home of a neighbor in Spencer Township after quarreling with their son was sentenced yesterday in Lucas County Common Pleas Court.

Rosemary Sullivan, 35, of 9235 Angola Rd., Spencer Township, was given a six-month sentence in the Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio, Stryker, but Judge Patrick Foley suspended the sentence and placed her on probation for two years.

She was convicted last month of aggravated menacing and falsification. In return for pleading to the misdemeanor charges, prosecutors dismissed one count each of falsification and tampering with evidence.

The convictions stem from an incident that occurred June 1, 2002, when a neighbor saw Ms. Sullivan drive past their home at 310 South Eber and fire a gun several times into the air.

Earlier in the day the defendant and her husband had quarreled with the neighbor's teenage son about riding all-terrain vehicles, and Ms. Sullivan later left a message on their answering machine that contained racial slurs and obscenities.

Investigators determined that shell casings found along the road were fired from a patrol-issued weapon that belonged to Ms. Sullivan. When questioned by authorities, she said she gave the 40-caliber Beretta to her father-in-law who lives in Wisconsin.

She subsequently filed a report that it had been stolen from her home. A 10-year veteran of the patrol, she was fired in August for untruthfulness and conduct unbecoming an officer.

Judge Foley also ordered Ms. Sullivan to perform 100 hours of community service and undergo alcohol and drug counseling, and comply with any recommendation for treatment.

“We both know that is part of the problem,” the judge said.

The neighbor, Anita Mora, was in the courtroom for the sentencing, but she did not speak.