Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

CASSOPOLIS — A Dowagiac man sentenced to prison earlier this week in Berrien County Trial Court was sentenced to time served Friday in Cass Circuit Court.

Brendon Paul Murray, 29, of Dowagiac, pleaded guilty to unlawful driving away of an automobile and was sentenced to credit for 54 days served and $198 in fines and costs.

The incident occurred July 27, 2023 in Dowagiac when he took a car that had been left running outside a local car dealership. The car was tracked down and recovered and Murray was arrested a short time later.

In Berrien County Trial Court, Murray pleaded guilty to unarmed robbery and receiving, concealing or possession of a stolen vehicle and was sentenced to concurrent terms of 72 months to 15 years and 24 months to five years in prison.

That incident occurred Nov. 13, 2023 in Niles, months after the Cass County incident.

“You were released on a PR bond and then you became a one man crime spree with assaults, robberies and carjacking,” Cass County Circuit Judge Mark Herman said. “You still have five pending warrants in Cass County for car theft, armed and unarmed robbery and unlawful driving away of an automobile. You went out of control.”

Judge Herman expressed disappointment with how Murray’s life has turned out. “You’re 29, you have two years of college, I don’t know what happened where you have ended up homeless,” he said. “I’m so disappointed, I thought you had a bright future ahead of you.”