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CLEAR Temp: 90 °F Wind: NW at 10 mph Friday, August 29, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine Joy Magazine Tempo A & E RogueValleyAutoFinder RogueValleyHomeFinder Real Estate Showcase Wellness Connection Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Employment Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend July 30, 2003 Guardsman skips more jail time in hate attack By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune A National Guardsman won’t spend any more time in jail for attacking a homeless man, an incident police called a hate crime. Aaron Andrew St. James, 26, of Medford, was sentenced to 60 days in jail Tuesday after pleading guilty in May to charges of third-degree assault and first-degree intimidation. However, St. James negotiated with prosecutors to subtract his sentence from time he already spent in jail — about 100 days — since his January arrest. Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Lorenzo Mejia also ordered St. James to spend three years on probation and pay $1,414 in restitution. Also charged in the case, 24-year-old National Guardsman Andrew James Patterson of Eagle Point pleaded guilty last week to assault charges. He remains in jail until his sentencing, scheduled for Aug. 13. Patterson and St. James will be discharged from the National Guard once officers receive paperwork on their convictions, said National Guard Capt. Chet Cary in Ashland. Advertisement Along with their friend and fellow Guard member Chadwick James Ritchie, St. James and Patterson beat a homeless man on Jan. 30 near the Gospel Mission homeless shelter on Jackson Street. Although Ritchie instigated the attack, St. James kicked the man in the chest and stomach, said Beth Heckert, deputy district attorney for Jackson County. "This is just the classic example of hanging out with the wrong people ... and the horrible consequences," Mejia said. St. James and Patterson later waited outside a Medford motel while Ritchie harassed the East Indian owner, whom he believed was an Arab. When a motel guest called police, Ritchie fled and shot himself to death in the parking lot of Shari’s Restaurant on Stewart Avenue. Police also linked Ritchie and Patterson to earlier attacks on another homeless man, whom the two called "a disgrace to his race," said Lt. Mike Moran of Medford Police Department. Ritchie and Patterson were sent home in August last year from a National Guard peacekeeping mission in the Sinai after they set fire to a barracks, National Guard officials said. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Rogue Valley Auto Finder Rogue Valley Job Finder --> Rogue Valley Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Real Estate Showcase Food for Thought Hike of the Week Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Openings Prime Times