BY STEVE KEMME
The Cincinnati Enquirer
HAMILTON -- Rejecting a request for leniency from Jeffrey E. Eberle's attorney, a Butler County judge sentenced the Loveland man Friday to six years in prison for participating in a vicious attack on a Miami University student.
Pat Garretson argued that Steve R. Cole, who was given a six-year prison sentence last month by a different judge, was the principal offender in the assault that some say was racially motivated.
Mr. Cole, not Mr. Eberle, inflicted the most damage on Jason Christopher Kindinger by beating him with an ax handle, the lawyer said.
But Common Pleas Judge H. J. Bressler dismissed that distinction. CP:J. Eberle
"You're both equally responsible for what happened," the judge said to Mr. Eberle. "The issue is that you and your friend attacked another human being for the sheer fun of it. I get cold shudders when I think about how close Mr. Kindinger came to dying."
Like Mr. Cole, Mr. Eberle pleaded guilty to felonious assault. The crime carries a prison term from two to eight years.
On Jan. 18, Mr. Cole, 19, of Oxford and Mr. Eberle, 20, jumped Mr. Kindinger and a friend who were walking in Oxford. Both attackers said they had been drinking and were looking for someone to jump. The friend escaped, but Mr. Kindinger was severely beaten. Some think the two assailants, who are white, attacked Mr. Kindinger because he is black.
Mr. Kindinger, who attended the sentencing hearing with his family, declined the judge's offer to address the court. Judge Bressler said he had read victim impact statements sent to him by Mr. Kindinger and his family.
Painful injuries
Mr. Kindinger withdrew from Miami after the attack and underwent surgery to rebuild his left cheekbone and eye socket. He has resumed his studies and will be a junior after this semester.
Mr. Eberle apologized in court for the attack and said he hoped Mr. Kindinger and his family can forgive him.
"I am guilty and I was wrong," he told Judge Bressler. "To this day, I still don't understand why I did it that night. I was intoxicated, but I know that's not an excuse."
Two of Mr. Eberle's friends, Wayne Carucci of Milford and Marc Waits of Blanchester, testified that he is not a violent person and has no racial prejudice.
"I've seen Jeff interact positively with all his friends, white and African-American," Mr. Carucci said.
Mr. Garretson asked the judge to consider that Mr. Eberle didn't attack Mr. Kindinger with a weapon, feels remorse and has no history of violent crimes.
A study of violent-crime cases in Butler County showed that first-time felonious assault offenders usually receive prison terms of less than six years.
Assistant Prosecutor John M. Holcomb said in court that he thinks the attack, which occurred on Martin Luther King Day, was racially motivated.
"Both of them caused serious physical harm," he said.
Witnesses said Mr. Cole and Mr. Eberle yelled racial epithets during the attack and, afterward, jumped and exchanged high-fives, Mr. Holcomb said.
Concern for victim
Judge Bressler said he believed Mr. Eberle's remorse is sincere. But he admonished Mr. Eberle's family and friends for expressing no concern at all for Mr. Kindinger in their letters to him asking for a lenient sentence.
"Nobody seemed to remember," the judge said, "that a student at Miami with a bright future was almost killed."
