September 25, 2013 at 4:56 p.m.
Thimm sentenced to five months in jail in stabbing case
Thimm sentenced to five months in jail in stabbing case
The sentence from Oneida County Circuit Judge Patrick O'Melia came after Thimm entered guilty pleas to three different charges - a felony count of false imprisonment and misdemeanor counts of battery and disorderly conduct. The state moved to amend two of the charges, attempted first-degree intentional homicide and first degree recklessly endangering safety.
The amended charges still exposed Thimm, 17, to as many as six years in the state prison system. But the consensus among all parties Wednesday was that prison isn't the appropriate place for Thimm.
"In this case, I think prison would be counterproductive," O'Melia said. "He would go into prison as one person and come out a worse person. I do think jail is appropriate."
As far as the amount of jail time, O'Melia said it has to be a long enough stay that it sends a message to the defendant. He said he thinks five months will do that for Thimm.
Before O'Melia handed down the sentence, several people gave statements to the court including the victims in the case, Thimm's mother Theresa Nordquist and her boyfriend Joel Sandberg. Also addressing the court was Nordquist's mother. Each provided a detailed account from their perspective of what occurred the morning of Dec. 12, 2012 when Thimm went after Sandberg with a knife after the two argued about Thimm staying up late the night before playing computer games. Nordquist was stabbed when she attempted to get in between Thimm and Sandberg.
"I remember thinking I was going to die," Nordquist told the court.
The wounds Nordquist suffered on her throat area have been classified as non-life-threatening throughout the duration of the case but she said that is misleading. She told the court it took three hours for medical personnel to clean and stitch her wound and it narrowly missed a main artery that could've put her life in jeopardy.
"One millimeter deeper and I would've died," Nordquist said. "I don't know if (Michael) is truly sorry. I don't know if he understands the magnitude of what he did. I don't know if I'll ever have a relationship with my son again."
She asked the court to show her son mercy but also hold him accountable for his actions.
"I want my son to know I forgive him and my greatest hope is that we can have a relationship again one day," she said.
Her mother and Sandberg made similar statements to the court.
"I wanted the court to get the feeling of the emotion that has somewhat been forgotten," Oneida County District Attorney Mike Schiek said, noting that he isn't able to sufficiently capture that in his legal arguments. "We're one millimeter away from this being a completely different case. It wouldn't be a plea deal then. It would possibly be life imprisonment."
Schiek requested three years of probation and seven months in jail. He called it a generous opportunity for Thimm to prove himself that also addresses punitive needs.
Thimm's attorney, Mary Hogan, agreed with the probation term but asked for significantly less jail time - approximately one more month after taking into account the 22 days of credit.
Addressing the court on behalf of the defense were Thimm's father (who he has been living with when not in custody) and a psychotherapist who has been working with Thimm. Both talked about the improvements they have witnessed in Thimm during the past nine months. Thimm has been diagnosed as being on the autism spectrum.
"I don't think there's any evidence that jail helps people on the spectrum," the pyschotherapist said. "It would strictly be endurance at best and hopefully not destructive. I do think (Michael) takes what he did seriously and has desires to have a relationship with his family."
Thimm's father said his son has adapted well to a routine established for him over the recent months and is remorseful about what he did.
"I would say Michael agonizes over this every day," Thimm's father said. "We have spent a lot of time in the past nine months getting him the tools (to help with the autism-related issues)."
Hogan said her client's diagnosis isn't being offered as an excuse for his actions on Dec. 12, 2012 but it does provide some explanation for the behavior.
"He isolated and excluded himself with his computer," Hogan said. "He feels shame and self-disgust that he didn't get a handle on his computer addiction and let it boil over."
She said she too has noticed promising rehabilitative gains in the last nine months for Thimm.
O'Melia said continuing rehabilitation will be an important aspect of Thimm's sentence. Thimm will have Huber privileges so he can attend counseling and school. Expungement will also be available to him if he successfully completes probation. Still, O'Melia said some period of incarceration is necessary. He said jail rather than prison is appropriate.
"It keeps him in the community. It allows him to continue his education," O'Melia said. "It would depreciate the seriousness of the offense if there was no incarceration."
Kyle Rogers may be reached at [email protected].
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