photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

Ethan Stephens, left, appears with his attorney, Dakota Loomis, Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024, in Douglas County District Court.

A Tecumseh man originally charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon pleaded no contest to misdemeanor endangerment Tuesday in Douglas County District Court.

Ethan Stephens, 25, pleaded no contest to the amended complaint after his court-appointed defense attorney, Dakota Loomis, negotiated a plea deal with the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office, represented by Assistant District Attorney Adam Carey.

Stephens was accused of using a gun to place another man in fear of bodily harm during a road incident on Aug. 4, 2023, in Douglas County. The specifics of the incident were not detailed in court on Tuesday.

Judge Amy Hanley ordered a sentence in line with the plea negotiations: 12 months in the county jail, suspended to 12 months of supervised probation. She also ordered him to undergo anger management training and to pay $618 in costs and fees, among other conditions of his probation, including surrendering the Beretta handgun he used in the incident.

The victim was not present at sentencing. Stephens, when asked if he wished to address the court, said, “Not really.”

“This was a serious incident,” Hanley told Stephens, “even though it ended up as a misdemeanor.”

“Firearms and driving incidents do not mix,” she said, “and it concerns the court a lot.”