ELLSWORTH, Maine — A woman convicted in a string of burglaries and robberies that ended with the shooting death of her boyfriend was sentenced Tuesday in Hancock County Superior Court to 7½ years in prison with all but two years suspended, and three years probation.
Ashley N. Crowley, 25, of Beals pleaded guilty to two charges of burglary, two charges of robbery and one charge each of stealing drugs, theft by unauthorized taking or transfer, criminal trespass, criminal mischief and criminal use of disabling chemicals.
The most serious charges involved a Dec. 13, 2010, incident in which Crowley and her boyfriend, Nicholas Richards of Machias, attempted to rob an Eastbrook man who they believed was a drug dealer holding $20,000-$50,000 in a safe, according to a police affidavit.
Crowley lured the man from his mobile home by telling him she had been involved in a car crash nearby, the affidavit states.
The man offered to help but was suspicious and, before leaving his home, placed a .357 Magnum handgun in his belt. When he stepped outside, Crowley sprayed him with pepper spray, and a man, assumed to be Richards, struck him repeatedly with a metal object.
“We have a gun and will shoot you,” Crowley allegedly told the victim.
“Baby, he didn’t go down,” she allegedly told her accomplice. “Shoot him, shoot him!”
The homeowner had trouble seeing, but fled to his nearby Jeep where he pulled the handgun from his belt and fired three or four shots at Richards, who made his way to the end of the driveway and collapsed.
Crowley loaded Richards into their car and called 911. At the urging of dispatchers, she pulled over on the side of the road on Route 200, where ambulance personnel found the car. Richards was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police later found a .38-caliber revolver at the scene, and an autopsy report of Richards noted an empty gun holster on his body. After her boyfriend’s death, Crowley confessed to Maine State Police.
Other charges involved robberies and burglaries, including the theft of oxycodone from a Sedgwick home, that occurred between Dec. 7 and 11, 2010. Hancock County Superior Court Judge Ann Murray ordered Crowley to pay $2,991 in restitution to three victims.
Crowley’s attorney, Jason Barrett of Eaton Peabody in Ellsworth, said the plea arrangement recognized the grave nature of his client’s involvement while acknowledging she was not the key actor in the Eastbrook incident. He also noted her full cooperation with police after her boyfriend was killed.
“She’s young, and she had no prior criminal history,” he said. “This allows her some opportunity, several years down the road, to turn the page and define her life in a more positive way, which is what she wants to do.”
Follow Mario Moretto on Twitter @riocarmine.
i love how they had to steal for whatever reason yet in the earlier original arresting mug shot she has perfectly done manicured french tip nails. nice…………
You can buy them at Walmart!
really huh i never realized that??. OF COURSE YOU CAN the point is, money to buy things but she’s stealing, you missed the point entirely but thanks for heads up on the walmart inventory…
2 years, what a joke
At age 25 she does have time to turn her life around and hopefully she does. She’s got 2 years(at which I don’t believe is enough, her boy friend had a gun and she hollered to shoot him)to think about her life.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsCjJRWFokU Chris Ross song about the whole incident…
Its never easy when it comes to an addiction…2 Years is just her jail sentence, she has to live with all this for the rest of her life.
Once again, a woman gets off 5 times lighter than a man. Unbelievable.
ps. My wife agrees
But there is a war on women they say….LOL
This person woman is clearly insane. Hopefully the next man she’s with in two years doesn’t listen when she yells “Shoot him, shoot him!”
Accessory to attempted murder. 2 years. Pathetic.
While I do agree with most of you that 2 years is not enough of a punishment for this crime spree. I do not blame her for her partners death. He went there with a gun and was in on the whole scheme to rob the intended victim. He has paid the ultimate price for his involvement but make no mistake he knew the risks as well as she did.
When are people going to scream about the gross inequities in sentencing for women vs. men??This is obscene!I thought she should get manslaughter.
What are our jailhouses at full capacity?
Are you kidding me? She was there with her male companion to rob and possibly kill someone and her companion did. She got 2 years for her criminal activities ……. WOW!!!!!!
Her companion did not kill someone. He was killed by the resident they were threatening to kill.
All of that and she gets 2 years and 3 years of babysitting. Wow…..I can’t imagine why the crime rates are climbing.
When are these people going to pay for the crimes they commit. No wonder there is so much of it. Must be too costly to feed them!! This is pathetic!!!
Why do they even bother with suspended sentences and whatnot? Why not just sentence her to two years?
Because after she does her 2 years, she can be sent back to do the suspended part if she screws up during her probation.