Court Of Appeals Upholds Serial Burglar's Long Prison Sentence

By Mike Perleberg Dakota Fraley lost an appeal of his sentence to the Indiana Court of Appeals. Photo by Dearborn County Sheriff's Department. (Dearborn County, Ind.) - The Indiana Court of Appeals has upheld the 68-year sentence of a serial home burglar and repeat offender. Law enforcement in Dearborn and Ripley counties were already familiar with former Dillsboro resident Dakota Fraley, who had past drug and burglary convictions as a teen and young adult, when he became a suspect in a series of at least 10 daytime home burglaries in April and May of 2014. Detectives began conducting covert surveillance on Fraley as they identified him as a possible suspect. Police attempted to arrest Fraley as he was caught in the act of burglarizing a home in the Sunman area on May 21, 2014. Instead, Fraley sped off in a pickup truck. As Fraley nearly struck one officer, another officer fired shots through the windshield, but missing Fraley and an accomplice. The pursuit reached more than 100 MPH before Fraley ditched the truck on a dead end road and attempted to run on foot before he was finally apprehended. Fraley was 22 when he was sentenced to 63 years in prison and five years on probation last December. He had earlier reached a negotiated plea agreement with prosecutors, pleading guilty to five counts of Burglary (class B felony) in Dearborn Superior Court II. Soon after he was sentenced following an emotional court hearing, Fraley appealed to the Indiana Court of Appeals. He argued that Judge Sally Blankenship abused her discretion in sentencing him to 68 years. He also contended that his sentence was inappropriate. In a decision issued October 14, the appellate court upheld all aspects of Fraley’s sentence. Not surprisingly, Dearborn-Ohio County Prosecutor Aaron Negangard welcomed the decision. “We are very pleased with the Court of Appeals’ judgment. It confirms that the sentence was fair and just. I am very pleased that multiple victims of his crimes will not be deprived of justice,” Negangard said. The first issue raised by Fraley’s attorneys was that Blankenship did not consider his history of drug abuse a mitigating factor in rendering the sentence. The appellate judges determined, however, that Blankenship had not cited the drug abuse as an aggravating factor either. Fraley also maintained that the local judge abused its discretion when she noted his criminal history as an aggravating circumstance. The Court of Appeals disagreed with the argument, stating that a criminal’s history or delinquent behavior may be properly considered in sentencing. The second issue on which Fraley hoped to lessen his sentence was by calling it inappropriate. The appellate judges determined Indiana’s flexible sentencing scheme allows trial courts to tailor a sentence appropriate to the circumstances presented. “All of these facts show that the nature of Fraley’s offenses were serious, severe, and dangerous,” the court wrote in its decision, citing the events of the burglaries and vehicle chase. The panel also noted that Fraley was not sentenced to the maximum possible, 100 years. “Fraley’s sentence is not inappropriate given the nature of the offenses and his character,” the 16-page decision concluded. If he chooses, Fraley does have the opportunity to appeal the Court of Appeals’ decision to the Indiana Supreme Court. RELATED STORIES: Burglar Receives 68 Year Sentence; Getting Caught “Saved My Life” Serial Burglar Pleading Guilty, To Be Sentenced Thursday Prison Sentence Separates Couple Accused In String Of Burglaries Burglary Suspect Faces New Charges For High Speed Chase New Charges, Details, Suspect In SEI Burglaries; Suspect’s Mother Critical Of Police Burglary, Chase Suspects Ordered Held On Bond UPDATE: Chase Suspects Believed Responsible For 25-30 Daytime Burglaries Investigators Crack Year-Old Burglary Cases