I am concerned about the plea bargains our district attorney is making after individuals are charged with serious, dangerous offenses. The district attorney and sheriff should provide explanations.

Summit Daily reported on Oct. 29 that a court accepted a plea deal where the individual pleaded guilty to minor misdemeanors in exchange for dismissal of felony charges for first-degree assault with extreme indifference and leaving the scene of an accident and five other charges, including reckless driving and reckless endangerment.

The charges arose from a fight where a local resident heard a commotion in their backyard, saw the defendant slamming a woman’s head on the ground, retrieved a handgun from inside the home and ordered the defendant to stop, who then fled. This was after he had been in a rollover accident on the interstate and had fled that scene. He received minimal jail time and a 365-day jail sentence with suspended imposition, meaning that part of his sentence will not be imposed unless he violates his 12-month probation. This defendant presumably is back on the street after committing serious crimes.

On Oct. 28, Summit Daily reported a plea bargain involving a defendant with ten charges of sexual exploitation of a child. The district attorney’s office allowed the defendant to plead guilty to one charge. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail and a four-year probation with a deferred charge. The case will be dismissed if he does not violate his parole terms. Minimal incarceration for very serious offenses.

These are horrendous facts. The facts seem clear. Why did the district attorney’s office reach these deals? Did the Sheriff’s Office overcharge? Were witnesses unwilling to testify? Is our county attorney’s office unwilling, or unable, to go to trial? 

I commend Summit Daily News for its reporting on these cases.