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NILES — An Indiana man was sentenced to prison for taking a car that didn’t belong to him Thursday in Berrien County Trial Court. 

Charles W. Curry II, 45, of Chesterton, Ind., pleaded guilty to unlawful driving away of an automobile and was sentenced to 18 months to five years in prison. He has credit for 77 days already served and must pay $258 in fines and costs. 

The incident occurred April 19, 2021 in Niles Township. Curry also faces charges in Indiana. 

Berrien County Assistant Prosecutor Kate Arnold noted that Curry’s past record includes 23 felonies and 14 misdemeanors, many related to property crimes and auto theft. 

Sanford argued for a lighter sentence since Curry faces pending charges in Indiana. Curry apologized for his actions and said he wanted to get back to his family in Illinois. “It’s been a long road with a lot of loss on that road,” he said. 

“You’ve had a lot of hard breaks but you created a lot of problems for yourself,” Judge Schrock said. “How long will it take for you to realize that committing crimes is not worth it. No one can anticipate the collateral damage from their actions.” 

“Hopefully you have figured it out,” he added. “It will take a while to get to the place where you can push the restart button. You have a lot of work to do. You have some hard things to overcome but you’re capable and you can if you make up your mind.”