CASSOPOLIS — A Cassopolis man who assaulted a woman and then tried to intimidate her not to testify against him is going to prison after being sentenced in Cass Circuit Court Friday.

Gary Wayne Kelly Jr., 32, of Williamsville Street in Cassopolis, pleaded guilty to felonious assault and bribing/intimidating a witness, both as a habitual offender, and was sentenced to concurrent terms of two to eight years in prison. He has credit for 211 days served in the assault case and 164 days in the witness case. He must pay $2,246.

The assault incident occurred Aug. 9, 2018, at a home in Cassopolis when he punched and assaulted a woman. The witness intimidation charge came when he wrote letters to the woman in early December to encourage her to not testify against him.

The victim spoke before the sentencing. She described Kelly as an “amazing, loving and caring” person when he is not on drugs.

“If not for meth, we wouldn’t be here,” she said. “In the past, he would walk away when things got heated between us. That day it was not him. … He needs help, not prison.”

Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz called Kelly’s actions to be “really serious behavior” that has consequences.

“He’s a dangerous, violent man and a manipulator,” Fitz said.

Defense attorney Robert Drake said that while the allegations were serious, no one but the victim and the defendant were there when the incident occurred. For his part, Kelly apologized for his actions and said he plans to get help for his drug addiction.

“I’m doing this for myself. I want to become a better person,” he said.

Cass Circuit Judge Mark Herman denied Kelly’s motion to withdraw his guilty plea, noting that Kelly could face a much stiffer sentence of 25 years to life in prison if he went to trial and was convicted of more serious offenses.

Judge Herman noted that Kelly has an extensive criminal history going back to when he was a juvenile and that the criminal justice system has offered him help in the past.

“There’s more here than just a drug problem,” he said. “You also have an anger issue. Drugs may do things, but there are other issues you need to address.”

The judge told Kelly that he had initially planned to give him a longer sentence but reduced it after hearing from him and the victim.

“But if you ever come back here for beating up someone, don’t ask for the low end of the guidelines,” he said. “You need to make changes and get help.”

In another sentencing, an Edwardsburg man was sentenced to prison on a drug charge.

Shaun Paul-Ryan Mutchler, 39, of Kenmore Drive in Edwardsburg, pleaded guilty to delivery/manufacture of meth and was sentenced to three to 20 years in prison. He has credit for 371 days already served and must pay $1,548. He also faces federal parole violation charges and can serve his sentence in any penal institution.

The incident occurred March 28, 2018, when police searched his home in Edwardsburg after he sold drugs to an undercover police officer in South Bend.

“This case certainly merits prison,” Fitz said. “Not only is meth the worst drug known to mankind besides heroin, but when you deliver drugs, it impacts the neighborhood and brings in violence.”

Also Friday, a Vandalia man who shot into a home last summer was sentenced to prison.

Julius Jermaine Young, 25, of Walnut Street in Vandalia, pleaded no contest to two counts of assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder and use of a weapon while committing a felony and was sentenced to two years in prison with credit for 329 days served on the weapons charge and two years’ probation and $1,506 in fines and costs.

The incident occurred June 29, 2018, on East State Street in Vandalia when he fired a gun in the direction of a residence.

“You had a longstanding dispute with another resident,” Judge Herman said. “Although there’s a question of who shot first, it was established that you did fire a gun, and people have a duty to retreat. When you go into a gunfight, there’s always a chance that you might end up pushing up daisies.”