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Stabber
Pleads Guilty, Sentenced to 12 Years
BY ADRIAN LEUNG
Over Winter Term, the man charged with stabbing a
female student in Noah Hall in the fall of 1999 pled guilty to attempted
murder and aggravated robbery, receiving a sentence of 12 years in
prison with no time off for good behavior.
Taylor Wynn, 19, turned himself in to the Oberlin Police Department on
Nov. 12, 1999, four days after the stabbing. According to police
documents, asked to use the phone, the girl let Wynn into the room. He
acted like he was using the phone, then stabbed the girl, demanding
money, Later, he attempted to snap her neck.
Initially, Wynn and his defense attorney entered a plea of not guilty by
reason of insanity. On Dec. 14, the defendant, represented by Jack
Bradley dropped the insanity plea, and on Jan. 11, Wynn pled guilty.
Presiding Judge Thomas W. Janas sentenced Wynn to nine years for
attempted murder and three years for aggravated robbery to be served
consecutively at the Lorain Correctional Institute. Wynn was also
convicted of burglary and assault, but both counts were classified as
allied offenses.
Explaining the way he arrived at the sentence, Janas said, “First of
all, with these charges, the law provides that the maximum sentence is
21 years. State law provides that the judge must start by considering
the shortest prison term, and then consider factors to determine the
final sentence. In this case, some factors were a prior history of
juvenile delinquency, and [Wynn was] committed twice to the Dept. of
Youth Services, the state correctional facility for juveniles. The court
also looked at the seriousness of the offense. Based on that, it
appeared clear to me that the 12 years sentence was adequate.”
Agreeing with the sentence, Lorain County Prosecutor Gregory White said,
“We took a very strong position on this. We consider this individual a
dangerous person. We handled him accordingly.”
Janas was appalled at the crime’s brutality. “The most disturbing
aspect of the crime was the fact that the physical attack on the victim
was completely unprovoked. The victim provided no resistance, and did
not oppose the defendants’ attempt to take her money. He could have
robbed her without the physical attack. It was a brutal, unprovoked
attack.”
Wynn did not receive the possibility of time off for good behavior
because the state of Ohio does not grant parole to crimes committed
after July 1996.
On Feb. 2, the defendant filed an appeal on the sentence handed down.
Bradley said,“The reason why we’re appealing is not because the
sentence is unfair, but because we don’t feel like the judge properly
complied with the law in imposing consecutive sentencing.”
According to Bradley, a judge assigning consecutive sentences in a
criminal case is required to take into account certain factors — for
instance, whether the crime was committed while under probation.
If successful, the appeal would change the sentence from 12 to nine
years. Under state law, this reduction to a sentence under 10 years
would make Wynn eligible for early release after five years.
A lawsuit filed in Dec. ’99, against the College, used the stabbing
incident as evidence in expressing the lax security on campus. The suit,
filed by the law firm Pierce E. Cunningham, seeks compensation for two
other female students who were assaulted at Oberlin in the spring and
fall of 1998.
Concerning the lawsuit, Interim Chief of Security Robert Jones said,
“That’s going to happen in a case. One side’s going to accuse the
other of being lax. That goes with the territory. I don’t know what
their perception is, of our security, but we try to provide the best
possible service we can. I wasn’t here at the time, but when it
happens, we critique it and see what we can do differently.”
Dean of Students Peter Goldsmith complimented the current state of
security, saying, “Presently, Safety and Security is in terrific
shape. Robert Jones has done a magnificent job in restoring the morale
of the department, and I believe that we now have a department that runs
extraordinarily well, in which students — and others — ought to have
a great deal of confidence.”
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