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Ventura man takes plea deal for blast
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A former Army infantryman pleaded guilty Monday to felony possession of a destructive device and possession of an assault rifle stemming from an explosion in Ventura last month.
Allan Toney's lawyer, Randy Tucker of the Public Defender's Office, said prosecutors amended their felony complaint involving the possession of a destructive device. Doing so gives the judge discretion to reduce the felony to a misdemeanor when Toney, 28, is sentenced May 15, Tucker said.
Toney could be sent to prison for up to three years and eight months. But if Ventura County Superior Court Judge Bruce Clark agrees with the plea bargain, Toney probably will serve 180 days in jail.
A document dated March 26 in support of a search warrant for Toney's apartment at 154 S. Hemlock St. showed police found four pipe bombs along with an AK-47 assault rifle, two other rifles "propped on the wall," brass knuckles, ammunition and other items.
"I did not exaggerate when I told you the other day that they (pipe bombs) were glorified fireworks," Tucker said. "There were no ball bearings, no nails, nothing like that. It was just basically a firecracker that meets the legal definition of explosive devices. He didn't realize that there was a real problem with this. Now, he knows."
According to a statement of probable cause by police in support of a search warrant, this is what happened:
Police were sent to Meta and Hemlock streets in Ventura on March 25. When they arrived, they were told by a resident that he heard a "fizzing" sound outside his residence. Police found what resembled a pipe bomb lying on the sidewalk at that street corner.
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More from Local NewsWhile they were there, officers heard an explosion coming from the apartment complex were Toney lives.
A resident told officers that he believed he saw two devices with fuses on the brick wall in front of Toney's apartment. Upon further investigation, police found a "very intoxicated" Toney, who demanded to speak with his uncle, who was acting as his legal counsel, according to the document.
Tucker said his client is a "very good person" who is "embarrassed" about what happened.
"He's happy that the district attorney did agree to amend the complaint so he can hopefully get this reduced to a misdemeanor at some point," Tucker said.
Toney served in the Army as an infantryman from 1997 to 2005, according to Sgt. 1st Class Keith O'Donnell of the Army's Human Resources Command. Tucker said his client served in Iraq, has no criminal record and received an honorable discharge from the military.
Posted by Tom_Johnston on April 17, 2007 at 5:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Mr Toney's issues will apparently be dealt with, perhaps with some deference to his military service and lack of prior criminal record.
He should also disavow the remarks of his Public Defender, Mr Tucker. A pipe bomb is a pipe bomb. An M80 or a "cherry bomb" is a sometimes legally obtainable "glorified" firework. Both are capable of separating the user from a hand or an eye.
They are dangerous devices, not harmless at all. Neither are pipe bombs...even if made with paper as are unsafe sometimes legal "glorified" fireworks. If this bomb were made with PVC or even metal pipe it would not need ball bearings, nails or whatever to seriously injure bystanders with shrapnel.
Posted by monica on April 17, 2007 at 6:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Not to mention he lives right outside the perimeter of Cabrillo Middle School! What about the safety of our children walking to and from school? He should not be given ANY leniency and prosecuted to the full extent.
Posted by vcresident on April 17, 2007 at 8:10 a.m. (Suggest removal)
We think this guy needs to have a much tougher sentence. He may be a war veteran, but he has been in trouble with the police in the past and a known racist. He shows all the signs of mental inbalance. He wil say anything to get himself out of trouble at this point. Who is going to be held responsible when he really hurts someone when he gets out of jail in the near future?
Posted by Equitable_Enforcer on April 17, 2007 at 9:24 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Mr. Toney will most probably receive a sentence appropropriate to the crime. I don't know what his experience was in Iraq, but the fact that he made sergeant tells me that mental illness could be at play here.
We have an even bigger problem in that attorneys are allowed to surface such inane arguments in defense of their clients. As we have seen all too frequently, some juries actually let criminals off on legal fiction that is even less believable.
Posted by Ventura22 on April 17, 2007 at 10:31 a.m. (Suggest removal)
BS! He knows good and well that it is NOT ok to possess such devices. He was in the military and knows better. These laws are taught to servicemembers of all ranks regarding weapons posession and dangerous materials. This individual is dangerous and needs supervision.
Good people don't have an apartment full of explosive materials and assault rifles. This is an individual who should not be able to own firearms. A felony conviction would ensure this but letting him PLEA DOWN TO A MISDEMEANOR WOULD CIRCUMVENT THE SYSTEM THAT IS MEANT TO PROTECT US FROM PEOPLE LIKE THIS!
Posted by surfmedic91 on April 20, 2007 at 11:37 a.m. (Suggest removal)
This guy should be given the full extent of punishment. Now that VCRESIDENT said he's a known racist, I know who this guy is and exactly where he lives. He's a disgrace to the Army and the city of Ventura. If he's out and around in 180 days when I return to "MY" neighborhood from my tour in Iraq, I'll be looking for him.
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