Published: November 22, 2008 02:10 am      

CRIME WRAP: Man sentenced in Stover shooting

One of the men involved in the attempted armed robbery and shooting of former Clarksville High School basketball standout Joe Stover pleaded guilty Friday to attempted armed robbery and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Corey Lee “Tink” Thornton, 26, admitted in Superior Court No. 1 that he was struggling with Stover during an attempted robbery that resulted in bodily injury to Stover.

Thornton was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 10 years probation for class B felony attempted armed robbery. He has been in jail since his arrest and received credit for 437 days.

“I think a maximum sentence on a B felony sends a clear message this office is going to be tough on people who commit crimes,” Chief Deputy Prosecutor Jeremy Mull said.

Thornton’s attorney, Amber Shaw, said her client was willing to take a plea agreement and that she was pleased with the outcome.

“He’s willing to take responsibility for what happened,” she said. “He’s very much ready to take what’s coming.”

She said the 10 years of probation could be reduced if Thornton has no other legal trouble after he is released from prison.

Thornton — along with Cleveland Williams III, also known as Christopher Johnson, and Russell Louis Embry Jr. —was charged with class A felony attempted armed robbery and class C felony battery.

Stover, a basketball star at Clarksville High School, spent several weeks in the hospital recovering. Mull said he still does not know who actually pulled the trigger because of conflicting statements from people at the scene.

Police said the three men robbed Stover in a car outside Cambridge Apartments on Camden Court in Clarksville. Police officers found $1,000 in cash and two “bluish-green” tablets on the floorboard of the car Stover was driving, according to court records.

Stover’s mother said after the shooting that her son is not a drug user and that the money was given to him to buy a laptop computer. Since July, Stover has been arrested at least twice on charges relating to drugs.

Williams was arrested in January after a standoff with Louisville police and is still being held there. Mull said Williams will be brought back to Clark County to face charges after his case is finished in Jefferson County, Ky.

Embry, who was arrested days after the shooting, has a pretrial conference scheduled for Tuesday, and his jury trial is scheduled for January. He is incarcerated on other charges.



Man pleads guilty to attempted armed robbery

A Jeffersonville man pleaded guilty to the July 2006 attempted armed robbery of a Chinese immigrant working at Panda Restaurant at 1703 New Albany-Charlestown Pike.

Brandon T. Booker, 24, entered the restaurant and gave 30-year-old worker Jizhong Zeheng a piece of paper with the words “Money in bag now.” Zeheng pretended not to understand, and Booker pointed a handgun at him.

Booker then tried to open the cash register himself but could not, according to court documents. He left without any money.

The state will recommend a sentence of 10 years with four of them suspended, Mull said. The judge still will have to accept the plea agreement at a sentencing hearing scheduled for Jan. 5 in Superior Court No. 1.

The case was scheduled to go to trial Tuesday, but the state’s offer was accepted Friday morning. Mull said he refused to offer anything less than the original charge of class B felony attempted armed robbery.

“I was offended by the fact that Mr. Booker would intimidate and try to steal from a man who did nothing but come to this country and work hard trying to provide for his family,” Mull said.

Booker’s attorney, Bill Allen, could not be reached late Friday afternoon for comment.