OLIVIA -- All three suspects accused of striking and injuring an Olivia man with a baseball bat outside of his home and hitting him with their car one year ago have now pleaded guilty to charges resulting from the incident.
Alejandro Pedraza III, 20, formerly of Olivia, entered a plea of guilty to an amended charge of felony, third degree assault in district court on Friday, reported Laurence Stratton, assistant county attorney with the Renville County Attorney's office. An original charge of second degree assault was amended to third in exchange for the plea. A charge of third-degree riot was dismissed.
The court ordered Pedraza to serve 109 days in jail, but gave him credit for that amount of time already served. He had been incarcerated in Texas before being extradited to Minnesota in November to face the Renville County charge.
Pedraza must also serve five years of court supervision. Under the agreement, he promised to return to Texas after his release from jail on Saturday.
The terms of probation require that he make restitution for the assault. The amount of restitution must yet be determined. The victim suffered a fractured left leg and broken ribs, and required stitches and care for injuries to his head. The restitution must also include the costs for his apprehension and transportation from Texas to Minnesota.
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Two other defendants in the case, Andrew and Adam Berg, both of Olivia, previously pleaded guilty to riot charges and were sentenced to serve up to five years of probation. Each also served 60 days in jail.
According to the complaint, Pedraza and Andrew Berg and Adam Berg drove an Oldsmobile Bravada to an Olivia resident on the evening of Sept. 8, 2005 with intentions of getting even with someone. The homeowner confronted the three and told them to leave.
As he turned away from Pedraza to talk to Andrew Berg, Pedraza allegedly struck him with either a baseball or wooden crutch that was also present at the site. He was allegedly struck four times.
The three defendants jumped into the Bravada to leave the scene, and struck the victim again, tossing him on to the windshield, the complaint charged.
