Gardipee receives 10-year suspended sentence

A man who was present at the February 2005 murders of a Pablo man and woman was sentenced last week in Lake County District Court.

Glen Gardipee, 30, was originally charged with two counts of deliberate homicide in the deaths of Catherine Madplume and Gerald Sirucek, who were shot to death at a party as part of a robbery scheme.

Troy McDonald pled guilty to the shootings, while a jury found Jeremiah Green guilty of two counts of homicide by accountability and tampering with physical evidence. Gardipee was convicted of the felony charge of tampering with physical evidence when he helped stash Sirucek's body.

Gardipee was released from jail last summer on his own recognizance. In a plea agreement, he promised to testify truthfully in any hearings or trials of co-defendants McDonald and Green, as to receive a 10 year suspended sentence.

Last month, in Green's trial, Gardipee provided a number of inconsistencies in his testimony. In earlier statements, he alleged that Green was the one who carried out the shootings, however when he was brought to the stand, Gardipee testified that McDonald was the killer.

On Thursday, July 8, Gardipee was supposed to appear before Judge Kim Christopher to receive his sentence, but he didn't show up, resulting in a warrant for his arrest.

Even after missing court and being less than truthful on the stand, Gardipee's sentence was consistent with his plea agreement. As it is, he received 10 years with all suspended except for time served for tampering with physical evidence.

"If you don't follow your conditions, you will be in front of me again," Christopher told him, "and you wont be allowed to leave here."

Sentencing for McDonald is set for June 29 and Green will be sentenced on July 20.