Harry L. Hull, 38, of Strong was allowed to enter the 13th Judicial District’s alternative sentencing program after accepting a plea agreement in the First Division of the Circuit Court of Union County on Tuesday.
Hull was facing two counts of breaking or entering and 21 counts of property theft; if convicted, he could have faced up to 138 years in prison.
According to court documents, in September, Hull’s father reported to police that Hull had stolen firearms from his gun safe. Included in the stolen property were rifles, shotguns, handguns and a muzzleloader.
Hull’s father reported that this was the second time his son had taken guns from him; about three weeks prior, he said he had to pay over $2,000 to get some firearms back after his son had stolen and sold them. He said he then put the guns in a safe and hid the key.
Hull’s father said his wife discovered a letter Hull left after the theft; according to court records, the letter said that Hull had taken the guns and pawned them due to a drug problem. Hull’s father said his son must have found the key to the safe.
While similar to probation, Union County Deputy Prosecutor Carla Gibson said the ASP is different.
Hull pleaded guilty Tuesday in court, but his plea was not accepted; if he completes the terms of the ASP, he will be able to withdraw his plea and his case will most likely be dismissed.
Gibson said when someone is sentenced to probation, they have been convicted of their crime; with the ASP, they are not convicted unless they fail to meet the requirements of the program. ASP has many of the same requirements as probation, with requirements to regularly report to a probation officer and submit to drug tests.
Hull attended a rehabilitation program in December in Hot Springs. A no contact order that had been established barring Hull from contacting his father was lifted at that time.
If Hull fails to meet the terms of the ASP, the court may accept his guilty plea and sentence him to one of several possible penalties, including probation, jail time or prison time. As part of the plea agreement, Hull was also sentenced to 100 hours community service and an intensive outpatient therapy program.
Caitlan Butler can be reached at 870-862-6611 or [email protected].