Suspended sentence in property damage

A 23-year-old Gardnerville Ranchos man was sentenced Monday to a six-month suspended sentence in Douglas County Jail and ordered to stay away from the 11-year-old former neighbor he originally was accused of frightening.

Todd Holdren was convicted of misdemeanor injury to property following a two-day trial in October on a felony charge of home invasion. The felony charge carried up to 10 years in prison.

"I really am sorry for everything that happened," Holdren told District Judge Michael Gibbons.

"It still breaks my heart every time I think about what I did (to the victim)," Holdren said.

The boy, who was 10 at the time of the May 14 incident, testified that he was home alone at 10 p.m. when a drunken Holdren broke into his home, terrorizing the child who made a frantic call to 911.

He told the boy he was looking for his older brother.

Holdren left the house without hurting the child and was arrested following a struggle with Douglas County deputies.

"It's a big nightmare," Holdren said. "I still just want to say, 'Sorry,' every time I see (the victim)."

The family did not attend the sentencing, but requested through Prosecutor Erik Levin that Holdren be ordered to stay off Honeybee Lane and away from the victims.

Levin said the boy's father wasn't interested in Holdren being locked up.

"He's concerned about the safety of his family, and for Mr. Holdren to get some help," Levin said.

Holdren served 12 days in jail and 19 days on house arrest.

Lawyer Derrick Lopez said Holdren agreed with the recommendation.

"Being sober has been great for him. He would not be in this situation had he been sober," Lopez said. "Sobriety will help insure nothing like this ever happens again."

Holdren had lived on Honeybee for three years, but said he would be living with his father in Gardnerville.

"He (Holdren) is very upset with what he caused," Lopez said. "Were they (the victims) here today, he would apologize again."

Gibbons told Holdren again Monday how fortunate he was there were no deadly repercussions from the incident.

"Hopefully, this was a learning experience for you about how bad things can be. You scared a little boy to death and officers had to use force to take you into custody," Gibbons said. "Drinking doesn't mix well with you."

Holdren has been sober since the incident.

"You've been clean for awhile. This is the time to get a fresh start," Gibbons said. "Mr. Lopez did an excellent job for you. Maybe you did just stumble into that home, and didn't go any further. It's not your typical home invasion case. It appears in the long run, justice has been served."

Holden was ordered to perform 40 hours of community service, pay $200 restitution, obtain mental health and substance abuse evaluations and follow all recommendations, participate in 12-step programs and counseling every week, and abstain from drugs and alcohol during probation.

He also was ordered to reimburse the county $200 for his attorney.