Story originally printed in the Westby Times or online at www.westbytimes.com
Published - Monday, June 30, 2008
Alm sentenced for armed robbery in Viroqua, Westby burglary
A Sparta man pleaded guilty, Tuesday, in Vernon County Circuit Court to felony counts of being party to armed robbery and burglary and was sentenced to four years in prison.
Casey R. Alm, 18, Sparta, admitted he had a role in the Dec. 1, 2007, armed robbery at Mary’s Quik Stop in Viroqua. For that Class C felony, punishable by a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison and a $100,000 fine, Alm was found guilty and sentenced by Judge Michael Rosborough to four years in prison and six years of extended supervision.
District Attorney Timothy Gaskell said Alm’s dealings with the criminal justice system are far from over.
“He ran the gamut in the juvenile system and as an adult has a boatload of trouble here in Vernon County and now faces 30-to-40 charges in Monroe County,” Gaskell said.
However, both Gaskell and Rosborough said Tuesday’s court action marked Alm’s first adult convictions. Rosborough said if Alm had been a few years older, the sentence could have been longer. Rosborough, in delivering the sentence, approved a mutually-agreed-upon deal between the state and Alm’s defense attorney.
“The overriding issue is armed robbery,” Rosborough said. “That is a crime extremely rare in this county. I can count on one hand how many of those cases that have come before me in 22 years. No one should be put in a position that (the victim) was put into, with a gun pointed at (their) face.”
Rosborough said Alm’s juvenile and adult record show he’s “very impulsive.”
Alm, when questioned by the judge, always answered either with “Yes, sir” and “No, sir.” Alm, who in court has appeared cocky -- smiling and laughing, was somber as he was given an opportunity to address the court.
“I shouldn’t have done that stuff,” Alm said in a choked-up voice. “Drugs had a major role in every thing I was doing. I’m sorry.”
Alm gave a confession to the Viroqua Police Department that said he was the lookout while Gregory P. Fair, 34, Cashton, went in the store and held the cashier up at gunpoint. In previous court proceedings, Fair said he was the lookout and Alm was the man holding the gun. A status conference in Fair’s case is set for the July 28.
During Alm’s burglary in Westby on December 7, resident Gregg Hanson reported a break-in at his house on West Park Street. Alm entered the kitchen, opened a Christmas present before proceeding upstairs and kicking down a bedroom door. Unbeknown to the intruder, homeowner Jacquie Hanson, was at home at the time of the break-in and inside the bedroom where Alm attempted to break down the door and had already placed a call to her husband Gregg Hanson’s cell phone, before Alm made it upstairs. When Alm broke down the door, Jacquie yelled at him and he turned and ran back down the stairs and out of the house.
The following day the Westby Police Department received a call from the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department that they had arrested a burglary suspect in connection with a number of burglaries between the hours of 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Dec. 7. Alm was identified from snow- shoe imprints taken at the Westby household and later identified from a photo line-up. A criminal complaint was initially filed against Alm by the Westby Police Department on Jan. 3.
“You need to reflect on the right of people not to be subject to that type of ridiculous criminal behavior,” Rosborough said to Alm during his sentencing on June 17.
Alm pleaded guilty to burglarizing the Hanson home in Westby on Dec. 7, 2007. Rosborough also found Alm guilty and sentenced him to four years in prison on that count, which was punishable by a maximum of 12-and-a-half years in prison and a $25,000 fine, and five years of extended supervision. The sentences will run concurrent.
Alm will be credited for 113 days served and may be eligible for the Challenge Academy Program and the Earned Release Program.
After the sentencing, Gregg Hanson, although uncertain of how he should feel about the outcome, is just hopeful that Alm can be rehabilitated while serving his consecutive sentences,”
“The sentence seems light, but I just hope rehabilitation is successful. Right now though I’m more concerned with his wife, Jacquie’s well-being,” Hanson said.
All stories copyright 2006 Westby Times and other attributed sources.