Four months ago, on April 11, in the Tenth Judicial District Court with Judge Thomas Stockard presiding, Dylan James Irwin Schostag pleaded guilty to a Gross Misdemeanor charge of Injury to Another Person’s Property valued between $250 and $5,000, which carries a potential penalty of 364 days in Churchill County Jail and a fine of up to $2,000.
Public Defender Wright Noel told the court that the defense is challenging the restitution amount of $14,318.15.
Twenty-two weeks later, on September 19, a Sentencing Hearing convened on the restitution owed. The report of the amount due was prepared and presented by the state. The discussion by all parties was painstakingly thorough and required three hours. Our report is not verbatim to spare our readers the minutiae of the proceedings. Rest assured, however, that the public will not be left out. Read on for the rest of the story, or at least the rest as it now stands.
Judge Stockard requested that the attorneys, Deputy District Attorney Chelsea Sanford for the state and Public Defender Wright Noel for the defense, address restitution before arguments for sentencing. Sanford called two witnesses, one of whom was the victim. Schostag was employed by the victim and stayed in a newly remodeled bunkhouse. Both witnesses said the bunkhouse was “100%” before Schostag moved in and was in terrible condition when Schostag left the premises. The victim stated, “It was a pigsty.”
The initial estimate for repairs was approximately $3,000. More related damage was found as repairs were taking place, resulting in the contested $14,318.13 amount the state asked for at the time of arraignment. One hole punched in the bedroom wall went all the way through, and made a hole in the bathroom wall. This allowed moisture to get inside the wall, resulting in the growth of black mold.
Sanford presented receipts for materials, contractors, labor, and attorney fees totaling $9,970.05. Sanford and Noel reviewed the receipts with the witnesses, item by item. Their goal was to ascertain which materials were used to repair the damage done by the holes punched in the walls, how many hours each of the five men working on the bunkhouse devoted to repairing damage caused explicitly by the holes punched in the walls, how much of the electrical repairs pertained to the holes punched in the walls, how much of the trash receptacle was used for waste caused by the holes punched in the walls, and how much of the attorney fees were necessary due to the holes punched in the walls. The victim explained he hired attorneys to protect his business and himself due to “multiple subpoenas and an order to show cause” filed by the Public Defender’s Office.
Following the witness statements regarding each area relating to the restitution, Judge Stockard stated, “We have concluded the restitution portion of this case.” He then ordered Sanford to prepare a brief consistent with the restitution hearing and a complete and exact amount of restitution in each of the four categories - labor, materials, contractors, and attorneys - to be done by October 10. Noel will have 14 days to respond once he receives Sanford’s brief. Regarding any cases either attorney cites, the judge instructed the attorneys he wants to know the facts and how they apply to the specific facts of this case. He also asked for a total of what the state is asking and a total of what the defense is asking. A Pre-Sentence Investigative Report was ordered to be completed and filed no later than October 31.
The decision on the restitution and the sentencing was set for November 14.
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