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06/06/2006Teen draws 7 years for break-inMotive in home invasion case is still a mystery
Kinske
LELAND — A Suttons Bay teen offered few answers for why he took a classmate and her mother hostage at gunpoint, a crime for which he'll serve years in prison. Thirteenth Circuit Court Judge Philip Rodgers on Monday sentenced Dean Michael Kinske, 18, to at least seven years in prison. Kinske in January forced his way into the Cedar home of classmate Jennifer Hecht. Kinske — armed with an AR-15 rifle and dressed in full camouflage — held Hecht and her mother, LeeAnn Hecht, hostage for nearly an hour. Police said Kinske handcuffed LeeAnn Hecht in a bedroom and planned to take Jennifer Hecht hostage for ransom, but after she recognized his voice and Kinske was confronted by her parents, he fled. "I'd like to apologize to everyone involved," said Kinske, who offered little other comment. Rodgers asked Kinske several questions about why he targeted the Hechts. "Why them? Why the handcuffs and tying people up? Why the camouflage?" he asked. "I honestly do not know," Kinske responded. "I am still not sure." LeeAnn Hecht told Rodgers that Kinske needed to spend time in prison. "It saddens me to ask you to sentence him to 10 to 12 years," she said. "My hope is that Dean will take this time and use it wisely." Kinske pleaded guilty to first-degree home invasion, assault with a dangerous weapon and felony firearms possession. A charge of attempted kidnapping was dismissed. Kinske must serve a state-mandated two-year prison sentence for the firearms charge, for which he has 102 days credit. Rodgers sentenced Kinske to serve 60 to 240 months for the home invasion and 32 to 48 months for the assault, time that begins after he serves the mandatory sentence. Defense attorney Marian Kromkowski said Kinske's step-father committed suicide last year, a difficult incident in the teen's life. "His internal compass got out of whack," she said. "He made some choices that were really out of character." Kromkowski said Kinske soon realized what he was doing was wrong, but LeeAnn Hecht disagreed. "Dean's attorney paints a milder picture than what occurred that night," she said. "He still has not given me an adequate response to why he picked my daughter that night." Kromkowski asked that Kinske receive a sentence that would let him qualify for a boot camp program, but Rodgers refused. "This, quite frankly, is far too severe," he said. See related stories:
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