Fallon man jailed for beating

A Fallon man was sentenced to 100 days in jail Thursday in Justice Court on a domestic battery charge.

Clifton Caffero pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor count and received the maximum punishment of 180 days, although all but 120 days were suspended plus he was given 20 days credit for time served.

While the math is confusing, Churchill County Deputy District Attorney Chlesea Sanford said the sentence was appropriate given the circumstances surrounding the case.

She said Caffero violently battered a woman in his home causing bruising on her head, face, both arms and legs, hands and feet and back during the Nov. 14 attack. The victim suffered “knots” on her head and facial lacerations.

In addition, Sanford said Caffero withheld her cellphone, and she was forced to run barefoot to a neighbor’s home to call for aid. Sanford submitted photos of the injuries as evidence.

Sanford also said Caffero used a baseball bat to inflict the injuries, although Caffero’s attorney, Dave Neidert, strenuously denied that claim.

Neidert said a domestic battery did take place, but at no time did his client yield a weapon. Neidert said if his client did so, then the DA’s office should have charged him with assault with a deadly weapon plus kidnapping for holding her in the home and forcing her to run to safety.

Caffero also told Justice of the Peace Mike Richards he never hit the woman with a bat.

Neidert then asked Richards for time served, a full suspended sentence and counseling for his client’s sentence.

Richards, though, said the violent nature of the crime called for a stiff sentence. In addition to serving time in the Churchill County Jail, Caffero must also complete counseling for six months to one year and community service.

In other court news —

A Fallon arrested in connection with two burglaries on Bell Aire Lane in July appeared Thursday in Justice Court for two new burglary charges.

Angius Sir Allen Hearne, 28, waived to District Court where Neidert, Hearne’s attorney, said he is expected to plead guilty to one burglary count after plea negotiations.

Hearne is accused of burglarizing two residences on Nov. 20, one of which was on Bell Aire Lane, although the cases are separate.

Debra Clenndenning, the former Fallon resident accused of embezzling from the Fallon Auot Mall, appeared Thursday in Justice Court.

She waived her right to a preliminary hearing and was bound over to District Court for further proceedings.