The Hastings Banner — Thursday, May 11, 2023 — Page 3foor Pratt’s sentencing memo.
As a result, Stephens was charged with
perjury along with the other charges but that
charge was dropped in exchange for the
guilty pleas.
Stephens’ attorney, Brandon Gardner,
spoke of his client’s drug addiction in defend-
ing him. He said Stephens’ testimony helped
lead to Lafey’s conviction and should have
been considered in sentencing.
“Judge, there’s no denying that this is a
very serious case. There’s no denying this is
a case that has gone on for a long time.
There’s no denying that Mr. Stephens is
going to prison today. Those are all facts,”
Gardner said. “Here’s some more facts. He’s
addicted to methamphetamine. Here’s some
more facts. The prosecutor has no idea of
what addiction is. Here’s another fact: she
also has no idea how bad addiction might
have played any of the decision-making that
was going on that night. She has no idea what
was going on through his head. She has no
idea how high he might have been.”
“Not understanding addiction is not under-
standing Mr. Stephens’ case. It is sweeping
everything under the rug, out of convenience,
because we don’t understand what’s going
on,” Gardner added.
Roberta Brickley, Gracyn’s grandmother,
during her victim impact statement accused
Stephens of conspiring with Lafey in the
death of her granddaughter.
“He and Lafey did this together. I have no
doubt in my mind that he needs to go away
for a very long time,” Roberta Brickley said.
“Hopefully he’ll find out what life in prison
is all about. I was a corrections officer for 15
years. I know all about people like you. I saw
them every day. I dealt with them ... Your
day will come.”
Stephens declined to make a statement
before sentencing.
Schipper declined to issue consecutive
sentences based on the tampering charges.
“But that’s where my gifts will end for Mr.
Stephens,” he said.
“I challenge the Court of Appeals, because
this case will get appealed ... to please watch
the videotape (of the Brickley murder) before
you make a decision on appeal, because
every murder is not the same,” the judge went
on to say. “I’ve seen, unfortunately, too many.
Of all I’ve seen, this is the worst ... when you
see a video, it becomes worse. It’s the audio
that will haunt you forever.”
Schipper refused to accept Stephens’ drug
addiction as an excuse for his actions.
“It’s not an excuse. It’s never an excuse.
It’s not a legal excuse, there’s nowhere in the
law that says it’s an excuse. In fact, it tells us
the opposite. It can never be an excuse,” the
judge said.
Stephens had a prior conviction for
third-degree criminal sexual conduct in 2009,
and also had a probation violation for drug
use and absconded from custody twice. He
also failed to register as a sex offender twice,
Schipper said.
Before she was sentenced, Rice admitted
to dropping off Stephens at his uncle’s home.
She said she “had no idea what he had done
- none.”
Addressing Gracyn’s family, Rice said she
heard a phone ringing underneath her seat as
she was driving home.
“I threw it out the window. I didn’t know
whose phone it was,” she said.
“My son died at 18. He was shot. I didn’t
get his phone back so I know the pain (of not
knowing where Gracyn’s phone was). There’s
no excuse. I wanted (to be) done. I could
never erase the hurt or pain I’ve caused your
family. I’ll never ask for your forgiveness
because if the tables were turned, I wouldn’t
be able to do it.”
Rice said she searched for Gracyn’s phone
but could not find it.
Randolph’s attorney, Kerri Selleck, spoke
of her client’s willingness to help the prose-
cution build their case.
“Had she not told the police ‘I ate the sim
card and I burned the shirt,’ the police would
never have known about it. They wouldn’t
have known. She told them,” Selleck said.
“She ratted herself out. She told them, and
she did that because it was the right thing to
do.”
“It doesn’t make up for what she did, but
she is trying, every step of the way, to make
up for what she did. She testified at (the pre-
liminary hearing), knowing she was going to
be charged. She testified at (Lafey’s) trial,
knowing she was going to be charged,” Sell-
eck added.
Schipper acknowledged Randolph’s coop-
eration with the prosecution and the court.
“I do think you have turned it around, and
I do think when you get out of jail, you’re
going to be this person. I do think you’re
going to be a different kind of, better person,”
Schipper said. “But there absolutely has to be
a consequence for what took place. People
need to know there’s consequences, the fam-
ily needs to know there’s consequences. A
year in jail is significant to me ... I think
there has to be some sort of acknowledge-
ment of maybe there is a light here that’s
worth saving.”
Roberta Brickley spoke of a rosebush Gra-
cyn planted for her before she died.
“That rosebush didn’t do anything the first
year. The second year, Gracyn (would have)
turned 19, I had 19 blooms. Every year I getmore and more. It’s a constant, constant
reminder.
“I hope to God you never have to go
through anything like this. Nobody should
have to. Losing a child is bad enough, but to
lose them like this, it is so wrong, so unnec-
essary. This did not have to happen and what-
ever part you played in it, you are going to
reap tenfold for the rest of your life. I feel for
you. I wish I was a better person and could
say I forgive you, but I can’t and I don’t.”
Nakfoor Pratt indicated that she would not
rule out other charges if evidence can be
found that others hindered the murder inves-
tigation.
“If I find out – there’s no plea agreement
on that – that there’s more here than meets the
eye, and anybody can find it out – we’ve got
one of the best detectives we’ve ever had on
it – there’s going to be consequences for
that,” she said. “That goes for anybody that
was there that night ... I see people there that
are well aware of the situation. If I find out
anybody did anything else in this case, I have
no problem (pursuing charges).
“It’s not fair. It’s not right. What happened
to Gracyn Brickley is sick and unjust, and
I’m tired of people coming in here and acting
like they just feel so bad and then they walk
out and they do stupid stuff.”PUPPIES!
AKC Registered Amer Cocker Spaniel
1 - Sable Male
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7 weeks old, ready to go Mother’s Day (5/14)
Corrected Phone No. 269-953-
No Money OrdersNOTICE: SEEKING APPLICATIONS FOR
VOLUNTEERS
The Barry County Board of Commissioners is seeking applications from
volunteers to serve on the following Boards:Mental Health Board – 1 partial term: prefer lived experience
with mental health or substance misuse/abuse or have a family
member who has lived experience with mental health or substance
misuse/abuse
Solid Waste Oversight Committee – 1 partial term, solid waste
industry
Planning Commission – 1 partial term
Zoning Board of Appeals – 1 partial termApplications may be obtained at the County Administration Office, 3rd
floor of the Courthouse, 220 W. State St., Hastings; or http://www.barrycounty.org
under the tab: How do I apply for: An Advisory Board or Commission
and click to display the application. Applications must be returned no
later than 5:00 p.m. on Monday, June 5, 2023. Contact 269-945-
for more information.199306BRICKLEY, continued from page 1 ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Jason Goforth (left) and Roberta Brickley (right), father and grandmother to murder
victim Gracyn Brickley respectively, offered words as three individuals were sentenced
for their roles in attempting to cover up the murder.Colleen Rice of Hastings addresses the family of murder victim Gracyn Brickley
before she was sentenced to a year in jail on charges of tampering with evidence.City wage and compensation study finds employees
slightly underpaid, recommends pay scale
Hunter McLaren
Staff Writer
A wage and compensation study found
Hastings city employees were paid competi-
tively when compared to similar communi-
ties across the state.
Mark Nottley from Municipal Consulting
Services LLC presented his findings from the
study via video conference call to council
members on Monday. The report found that
city employee wages were only eight percent
below the market average when taken as an
aggregate.
Six roles were pointed out as being below
the study’s minimum-recommended pay
range: cashier and accounts receivable clerk;
cashier and accounts payable clerk; police
administrative assistant; full-time firefighter;
assistant assessor; and utilities superinten-
dent. It would cost the city $16,121 in total to
bump the positions to the minimum recom-
mended salary, with most raises falling
between $1,000 and $3,000. The largest rec-
ommended raise was for the assistant asses-
sor position, at $5,076.
Nottley laid out the main objectives of the
study, which were making sure Hastings city
employees were paid fairly compared to each
other and also compared to other municipali-ties. The study also took into account benefits
offered to employees and hoped to provide a
structure to implement any suggested chang-
es.
The study was conducted in four main
phases: classification analysis, market analy-
sis, grade and salary structure and implemen-
tation. The classification analysis phase broke
down each position at the city and its require-
ments, while the market analysis compared
those roles to similar roles across the state.
The grade and salary structure phase
involved ranking roles based on various fac-
tors, including level of education required forthat particular role, working conditions, job
requirements among others. Those roles were
then given a grade one through 11, with each
grade being assigned to a different salary
range.
The study also recommended the city
move to a new pay structure using a step-
based system. The system would allow sala-
ries and raises to be more consistent across
the city’s various roles, Nottley said.
In the example provided in the study,Rick Krouse appointed as
Hastings interim fire chief
Hunter McLaren
Staff Writer
Rick Krouse will serve as the Hastings
Fire Department interim fire chief.
Krouse’s appointment to the position by
City Manager Sarah Moyer-Cale was
approved by city council unanimously at
their regular meeting Monday. Krouse pre-
viously served as the department’s assis-
tant fire chief, and will be heading the
department in the interim while the city
searches for a new fire chief to replace
Roger Caris. Caris passed away last month
at the age of 86 after serving the depart-
ment for 49 years total, acting as fire chief
for 40.
Moyer-Cale let city council members
know the city had started its search for a
new permanent fire chief and would start
reviewing candidates June 2.
“I’m accepting applications through
June 2, when we’ll do the first review,”
Moyer-Cale said. “But I posted the posi-
tion as open until filled, so it just depends
on what we get at that time.”Mayor Dave Tossava spoke in favor of
appointing Krouse to the interim position
and said he’d be a great fit for the role.
“I’ve known Rick for a long time, he
used to work for me,” Tossava said. “I
think he’s a good fit for interim fire chief
and I think he’ll do a great job.”
Krouse provided the fire department’s
monthly report to council members in
Caris’s stead. Krouse said he was still reel-
ing from the loss of three long standing
members of the Barry County firefighting
community in April.
“During the month of April, there were
eight firefighters that lost their lives in the
line of duty in the United States. A little
closer to home for me, Barry County lost
three members of its firefighting family,”
he said. “As you know, Chief Roger
Caris, former chief Richard Garrison
from Prairieville Township and finally
full-time driver Floyd Yesh here from
Hastings. All three are people that I’ve
worked with for many years and it was a
tough month for us.”Rick Krouse presented the Hastings Fire Department’s monthly report to city
council members Monday after he was appointed interim fire chief. (Photo by
Hunter McLaren)Pictured on screen, Mark Nottley from Municipal Consulting Services LLC present-
ed the findings from a wage and compensation study to city council members. (Photo
by Hunter McLaren)
See CITY WAGE, page 8