By Dylan Ferguson
SACRAMENTO – Judge Michael A. Savage appeared to be in a good mood here this week—he joked about the location of a defendant’s previous conviction, and Oregon laws. And later gave a break to the defendant in the case.
The defendant, Lillyanne Kostelecky, was charged in Deschutes County, Oregon, on December 12, 2019, for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. This is Oregon Revised Statute § 164.135.
Judge Savage mused, “That is a lot of numbers for a vehicle theft. I wonder what 164.135a…Do legislators sit around and think ‘oh this will be funny’? Because calling car theft a 6-digit number is 
pretty hilarious.”
The prosecutor Cody Winchester playfully interjected and said, “Well, ours is 5 numbers and a letter, right?”
“Yeah, it is beyond ridiculous. This is California, but Deschutes County, that sounds like a reasonable place.”
The judge and DDA both laughed.
This conversation began because Winchester could not recall if he sent over an amended copy of the defendant’s probation terms to the court, explaining, “I may have sent over an amended or I may not have.” Judge Savage offered to do the case as “reasonably related” if Winchester could state the date of the defendant’s prior conviction.
The defendant Kostelecky appeared in custody on a charge of willfully and lawfully having a 22-caliber pistol in her possession, after being convicted of a felony (the 164.135/car theft from Deschutes County).
Kostelecky was arrested on February 6, and has served 90 days in county jail with 63 days in credits. Judge Savage added that with this, Kostelecky had 62 days of good time, for a total of 125 days, which was time served as of November 9.
The defendant pleaded no contest to a reasonably related ex-felony possession.
Judge Savage’s good nature appeared to continue.
He placed the defendant on two years of formal probation and ordered that she serve 90 days in jail (which she had already served). Conditions of probation were Kostelecky would be prohibited from owning or possessing any firearm or ammunition for the rest of her life and complying with any other specific conditions listed in the plea agreement.
Additionally, Judge Savage waived a $300 restitution fine for the defendant. Judge Savage converted this fine into nine days of actual time and ran it concurrently with all of the other time imposed.
The judge could have made it much worse for the defendant—the sentence range for unlawfully possessing a loaded and operable 22-caliber pistol is from 16 months to two or three years in custody, and fines starting at $10,000.
Dylan Ferguson is a second-year at Westmont College, majoring in kinesiology with a minor in Spanish. She is from Las Vegas, Nevada.
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