Final golf course vandal sentenced to youth prison

LIMA - Gene and Linda Dugan left juvenile court Wednesday hoping they could get on with their lives after the final teenager who set ablaze 14 carts at their golf course was sent to prison.

The teen who set the fire, Robert Cody Collins, left the courtroom in tears on his way to a prison for juveniles where he will spend at least six months but not beyond his 21st birthday. Judge Glenn Derryberry, of Allen County Juvenile Court, also ordered Collins to pay $86,522 in restitution.

Derryberry told Collins he needed to be punished for his actions.

"You did something that wasn't smart, walked away and went back," he said. "If you are a good kid who made a dumb mistake you can complete your high school education at DYS [Department of Youth Services] and you can get on with our life when this is over."

The Dugans declined comment afterward but inside the courtroom asked Collins to explain why he had to start the fire at Hawthorne Hills Country Club on July 1 that completely destroyed 14 carts. The group also tipped over 74 carts, which included the 14 set on fire.

"How could you light a match and not think for a minute, ‘Hey, maybe we shouldn't do this'?" Mr. Dugan asked.

Collins, who is now 18, never answered his question but did apologize.

"I consider this the biggest mistake of my life, immature and juvenile," he said.

Collins was convicted of arson and felony vandalism. He was among a group of five that struck the golf course. Collins returned to the golf course to light a match to start the fire. When the first match didn't work, he lit another, Prosecutor Tony Miller said.

Miller said it was the worst case of vandalism that's been through Juvenile Court in many years. Typical cases include broken windows or spray paint. Miller said he hoped this case would serve as an example of what can happen if someone doesn't think before committing a crime.

"I hope other kids take the consequences in account. When you do something like this you're going to pay the price," he said.

Mr. Dugan, who still remembers walking through the aftermath and the smell of gasoline, said he and his wife wake every morning thinking of the vandalism spree and worrying about their golf course.

"The fire, that has never left our minds. The sight of those cars and the complete destruction. The thought, if the fire would have gotten to the pro shop and the clubhouse, would have put us out of business," he said.

The golf club has been in the Dugan family since 1963. The fire nearly closed it and crippled the business because the bulk of its business comes from golf outings in which groups rent golf carts.

The other teens, Ryan Arnett, 17, of Salyersville, Ky., Aaron Sheldon, 18, of Alger, and Taylor Pinks, 16, of Ada, were given suspended prison sentences, placed on probation and ordered to pay restitution for the carts they tipped.

Josue Martinez, 18, was an adult at the time and therefore the only vandal charged as an adult. He received 30 days in jail and was ordered to pay restitution.

Sheriff investigators caught the boys after following footprints left in the morning dew on the grass. The footprints led to a campsite near the golf course.