By Marci Piltz
Record-Courier staff writer
The former street superintendent for the city of Ravenna will not serve any prison time for taking building supplies from a city building last year and using them for a home remodeling project.
David B. Stone, 49, instead was sentenced Monday to two years of probation by Acting Judge Joseph Kainrad in Portage County Common Pleas Court. Judge Laurie Pittman, who accepted Stone's guilty plea on a fifth-degree felony charge of theft in office in April, was not on the bench because she was on a pre-scheduled vacation, according to court officials.
Ravenna Councilman Joe Bica said he believed the punishment was "a slap on the wrist," and should have been more severe.
"I was disappointed in the sentence," he said. "I think it sends the wrong message about political corruption."
Ravenna Mayor Kevin. Poland said he was disappointed that there were no additional sanctions.
"I didn't think the court would actually sentence him to prison, but since he was an public employee he should've been held to higher standard," he said. "I would've been satisfied if he had been ordered to serve some amount of time in the local jail. When you steal, as a public employee, a message needs to be sent that that's not going to be tolerated."
Prior to sentencing, Stone's attorney, George Keith, asked that Stone, who had worked for the city of Ravenna for approximately 28 years prior to his Oct. 24 resignation, receive probation instead of prison time.
"The state may argue for imprisonment because this case involves theft in office. If it had not been for the fact that Mr. Stone was working for the city, this charge would have been a misdemeanor and no one would have noticed it whatsoever," Keith said.
The charge stemmed from an incident that was brought to Poland's attention Oct. 11 and involved Stone taking miscellaneous building supplies from the city's service garage at 701 Oakwood St. Among the items were a bag of loose tile pieces, 13 wooden kitchen cabinets and 16 pieces of floor tile. The value of the items was estimated to be less than $5,000.
Assistant Prosecutor Gene Muldowney told Kainrad the charge against Stone was a felony and not a misdemeanor because Stone was a public employee at the time the of the theft.
"He violated the trust of a city, a community, and for those reasons the State of Ohio believes a prison sentence is appropriate," Muldowney said.
Kainrad then asked Muldowney if he would be recommending prison time if Stone had not been a city employee at the time of the theft.
"It doesn't matter because he was," Muldowney told the judge. "He held a position of trust and he did violate that trust."
After reviewing some papers on the bench, Kainrad announced he was not going to sentence Stone to prison.
"I understand the system wants more out of its public employees than others, and while we are talking about theft, it's a matter of public trust and it's the taxpayers money," Kainrad said. "But at the same time, the crime of theft is basically the same whether you are a city employee or a non-city employee, but for the statute that makes it theft in office."
Kainrad then ordered Stone to serve two years of probation as well as to perform 100 hours of community work service either for the city of Ravenna or for Habitat for Humanity.