Document text
41 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, January 27, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 17, 2004 Bomb-scare perpetrator gets 10 months By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune An airline passenger who phoned in a bomb threat to Medford’s airport earned a 10-month prison sentence. Running late for a flight on June 2, 2003, Richard Allen Harrison Jr. called America West airlines shortly after the plane left Medford for Phoenix, Ariz., at 2:45 p.m. Harrison told the call- taker he had overheard two men in suits talking about the flight. He said he was concerned the plane wouldn’t make it to Phoenix because a bomb may have been on board, Harrison admitted in his plea petition. The plane returned to Medford with its 30 passengers about 15 minutes after taking off. Harrison asked if he could get on the flight, and eventually was arrested. Police sealed off the airport, and passengers were searched and questioned. Bomb technicians found no explosive device on board. "If it weren’t so tragic, it would be funny," said Harrison’s defense attorney Don Mixon at Harrison’s Thursday sentencing hearing in U.S. District Court. "If it weren’t so stupid, it would be amusing." The 31-year-old Klamath Falls resident apologized for his actions while his mother, Brenda Harrison, and a Klamath Falls pastor vouched for his character. Advertisement Because the threat caused a major disturbance to the public and necessitated massive police response, Harrison should get a federal prison sentence of a year and half to two years, U.S. Assistant Attorney Bob Thomson argued Thursday. That prison term would have exceeded federal guidelines requiring 10 to 16 months. The stiffer penalty could not be imposed, countered Mixon, in light of a recent decision by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which bars judges from imposing harsher sentences based on facts not presented to a jury. That case is now before the U.S. Supreme Court. Harrison pleaded guilty in February to conveying false information concerning an attempt to damage or destroy an airplane with an explosive device. His sentence initially was postponed pending the outcome of the Supreme Court case, but after a lengthy delay U.S. District Court Judge Ann Aiken decided to proceed with sentencing. Mixon argued Thursday for a probationary sentence without prison time because the crime was not premeditated. Harrison previously spent three days in jail on the charge. "It was just a very careless mistake," Harrison said. "If I could take it back, I would." Aiken said she would have appreciated Harrison’s explanation more had the crime happened before the terrorism acts of Sept. 11, 2001. "After 9/11, the world is on notice," Aiken said. "You don’t do that." Aiken ordered Harrison to serve the 10-month sentence based on federal statute and to perform 480 hours of community service, preferably speaking to teens about making good decisions. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers