La Plata, MD – Kindell Devone Neale, 32, a recently inducted resident at the Maryland Department of Corrections, will be spending more time there after appearing before Charles County Circuit Court Judge Helen I. Harrington, Monday, Jan. 12.

Currently serving 50 years for attempted murder, Neale was back in court with Charles County Public Defender Michael Beach on charges of witness tampering and solicitation to interfere with a witness.

There were other cases on the docket as well, where Charles County Assistant State’s Attorney John Stackhouse outlined two armed robberies where Neale and an accomplice allegedly went to a hotel room and at gunpoint robbed five individuals between the ages of 17 and 23, taking cell phones, cash and CDs.

“Ten days later,” Stackhouse said, “the two defendants went and kicked in the door to the apartment [of the two victims], stuck a gun to the back of his head and threatened to kill him.”

Stackhouse said the other victim had two children in the apartment, an infant and a 4-year-old.

“We’re not looking to pile on time here,” he said. “We’re asking you to give justice. It does give a measure of justice to the victims.”

Harrington handed down a sentence of 20 years in the intimidation of a witness and another five years for the solicitation of a witness but suspended all but five years, to be followed by five years of supervised probation.

Before sentencing in the robbery cases, Harrington asked Neale if he wished to address the court.

“I don’t feel that if you keep locking me up that you’re rehabilitating anybody,” Neale said. “You’re not rehabilitating me. You’re not helping nobody.”

He told Harrington he “had nothing to do with these crimes,” and said he would have taken them to trial “except the state’s attorney’s office was going to get those people to lie on me.”

“I’ve seen you in this court several times in the past year,” Harrington told Neale. “The court is never going to know what happened. You gamble when you go to trial. I have seen strong cases the jury doesn’t accept, I have seen it go the other way. It can be unpredictable. By entering pleas in these cases you have saved the court’s time and limited your own exposure.

“We talked the other day about the choices you make,” the judge added. “What happens to you from now on will depend on the choices you make. How are you going to live the rest of your life?”

Harrington then sentenced Neale to concurrent 15 year sentences, suspending all but two years.

Harrington wished Neale luck as he was escorted in handcuffs and chains from the courtroom.

Contact Joseph Norris at joe.norris@thebaynet.com