The Rockwell teen charged with setting a fire that destroyed the Dan Nicholas Park Petting Barn and killed 43 animals was sentenced to 16 to 20 months in Rowan Superior Court this morning after pleading no contest to burning a public building.

Nineteen-year-old Jerry Harwood was also given a six-to-eight-month active sentence for breaking into a laundromat and tile store and five suspended sentences of six to eight months for the breaking into motor vehicle charges. He was not sentenced for the 43 felony animal cruelty charges, larceny charges and possession of stolen goods.

Assistant District Attorney Karen Biernacki said the animal cruelty charges were Class I felonies — the lowest on a scale from A to I — and that state statutes do not allow for an active sentence unless the defendant has an extensive prior record.

As part of a plea arrangement, Harwood, who was 17 at the time of the March
2006 fire, will receive credit for almost 14 months spent in the Rowan County Detention Center and will, upon his release, be on supervised probation for 48 months. During this time, Superior Court Judge John Holshouser ruled that he is not to own a pet or weapon.

Holshouser also sentenced Harwood to 100 hours of community service upon his release, specifying that none of the work is to involve the animal shelter or put him in contact with animals. He was also ordered to pay $1,000 in court costs, the legal fees of court-appointed attorney Steve Gray and restitution to the victims of the break-ins; submit to a psychological evaluation and recommended treatment; refrain from using any illegal or controlled substances unless prescribed; and be subject to breath or blood samples and warrantless searches.

If Harwood violates his probationary conditions, Holshouser reminded him that he will have to serve his five, six-to-eight-month suspended sentences for motor vehicle break-ins back to back.