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Convicted burglar sues prison warden, claims rights violated

LISBON – A man convicted in Columbiana County in 1995 of aggravated burglary and failure to comply with a police officer has filed a civil case against Warden Kimberly Clipper of the Lorain Correctional Institute claiming his Fifth and 14th Amendment rights are being violated.

Both amendments deal with due process in legal proceedings.

Troy A. Short, 46, Grafton, claims he is serving a maximum term of incarceration under the law as it existed at the time of his conviction, which he said is twice the maximum penalty other prisoners are serving under Senate Bill 2, or truth in sentencing, which was passed by lawmakers after he was sentenced.

The bill, which went into effect on July 1, 1996, limits the sentence for those convicted of the same crimes as Short to no more than eight years.

According to his handwritten petition dated April 23, Short notes he was arrested on March 27, 1995 and sentenced to a prison term of eight to 15 years for aggravated burglary and failure to comply with a police officer. He served five years and 71 days in prison and was released on parole on Oct. 10, 2000.

In Sept. 27, 2005 he violated his parole after four years and 352 days on parole, and on Dec. 15, 2005 he was arrested in Colorado for the offenses of burglary and theft. At that point he was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

On March 18, 2013 he was released on parole in Colorado and extradicted back to Ohio for violating his parole in the Columbiana County case.

In his petition, Short claims a Dr. Pagano at the Loraine Correctional Institution informed him due to the amount of time he has served and the changes in sentencing laws, he should no longer be incarcerated. Short contends he is now serving twice the amount of time as other offenders for the same offense.

According to Short, he has served 10 years and 219 days toward the sentence and has not been told how much more prison time he has in Ohio before he will be released.

“This case is of particular urgency because petitioner is unconstitutionally restrained of his liberty by the state under an unconstitutional statue and other state courts have granted relief to other offenders with similar cases,” Short wrote.

He asks for final discharge in Ohio so he can return to Colorado and serve his parole there.

The matter has been assigned to Judge John J. Mascio, who is a retired judge visiting from the Steubenville area.

djohnson@mojonews.com

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