A Vestaburg man said the past 81/2 months he's spent in Washington County Jail have helped him realize how wrong it was for him to help steal two exotic monkeys from a Somerset Township wildlife center.
"I've come to really value my freedom," said 19-year-old Steven Christopher Labore, who appeared Thursday before Washington County Judge John DiSalle for sentencing on charges of burglary, criminal trespass, criminal mischief and reckless endangerment.
Labore entered an open guilty plea on the charges on March 3. An open plea means no offer had been made to Labore, and his sentence would be entirely up to the judge.
Labore was arrested nine months after he and Michael Anthony Naylor of Rices Landing, Greene County, broke into the climate-controlled greenhouse at Grant Kemmerer's Wild World of Animals wildlife company and stole a spot-nosed Guenon monkey and a Mona Guenon monkey from their cages Nov. 5, 2007.
The primates and other animals are used in educational programs.
After the incident received much media attention, the monkeys were returned to the Kemmerers by Labore and his mother.
The Kemmerers previously had said the monkeys were traumatized and the other animals inside the climate-control building were placed at risk during the thefts.
Labore left the area and evaded capture by police while Naylor was arrested and charged in the case. Naylor pleaded guilty in April 2008 and was sentenced to 2 to 5 years in prison. He also was ordered to pay his share of restitution to cover damages at the center.
In September, Labore was apprehended after it was discovered that Labore had posted a photo of himself on Myspace.com. Labore also listed his address as Lexington Park, Md., on the Web site. His father lives in Lexington Park.
Maryland police picked up Labore, and he was extradited to Washington County for prosecution.
During his sentencing hearing Thursday, Labore, along with his parents, his younger sister, his grandmother, and two aunts, told DiSalle that the man is a changed person and he should be spared any further time in jail. Instead, they all said that Labore should be given the opportunity to carry on a four-generation family tradition of enlisting in the U.S. Navy.
"Any more jail time would hold him back from becoming a productive member of society," said Labore's mother, Jennifer Schmidt. "He's a changed young man. The loss of his freedom has taught him a lesson."
Labore said he has come to understand the seriousness of the crime he had committed and was very sorry for his actions. He said he realizes that the monkeys were like children to the Kemmerers, who could not attend the court hearing because they were doing a show in Florida.
Labore and his parents also explained that Labore's missing of court proceedings was purely an oversight and that they were unaware of the scheduling of the various hearings.
Despite the pleas for leniency, DiSalle said he found Labore's action aggravating, especially since he and Naylor returned to steal a second monkey after taking the first one.
"This isn't scrap metal or tools. These were living creatures," the judge stated.
In addition, DiSalle said he held Labore more responsible for the crime because he was smarter and more articulate than Naylor and had a stronger support system. Subsequently, the judge explained that he felt constrained to give Labore the same sentence as his co-defendant.
In turn, DiSalle sentenced Labore to 2 to 5 years in prison on the charges stemming from the theft of the monkeys and two separate cases in which Labore was charged for driving erratically throughout Vestaburg on Oct. 16, 2007.
The judge did point out that Labore will be eligible for state boot camp or the Recidivism Risk Reduction Incentive program, both of which if completed could make him eligible for an earlier parole.