Nov. 6 — LOCKPORT — A Falls community activist and former mayoral candidate left a county courtroom in handcuffs Wednesday afternoon after asking a Niagara County Court judge to sentence him to prison, May rather than probation.

Judge John Ottaviano told Demetreus Nix he felt “stuck between a rock and a hard place” when deciding how to sentence him in a burglary case. Nix, 38, faced 1 1/3 to four years in prison for his guilty plea to one count of attempted second-degree criminal mischief, a felony level E.

He was originally charged in a grand jury indictment with third-degree burglary, second-degree criminal mischief and petit larceny for a January 2023 burglary at a Pierce Avenue home he had been hired to renovate .

At the time of his plea, Ottaviano told Nix he would sentence him to “no more than 1 year in the Niagara County Jail” if he paid $32,000 in restitution to his victim before his sentencing date. Nix made that payment, prompting his attorney, Rodney Giove, to ask Ottaviano for a Deferral of Dismissal (ACD) or parole, both of which would have spared Nix time behind bars.

“There was substantial restitution in this case,” Giove said. “Mr. Nix understands what he did, he knows he was wrong.”

Giove also said the victim in the case would support a sentence without jail time.

But Assistant District Attorney David DeChellis objected, saying Nix’s criminal record warranted more punishment. The assistant prosecutor asked for a year in prison.

While Ottaviano said he may sentence Nix to probation, Giove said his client is eager to move on from the case.

“He just wants to serve whatever sentence is handed down today,” Giove said, indicating his client was looking to move to Louisiana after his prison term. “He has determined that this area is not the area for him.”

Ottaviano said he thought a parole was “too lenient” and told Nix we would spend the next six months in the Niagara County Jail.

The owner of Nix Construction and Property Management and founder of the Entrepreneur School of Thought said at the time of his plea that he accepted prosecutors’ offer because he felt it would allow him and his family to “move forward.” He apologized to the court and his “community” on Wednesday.

“I want to apologize to your honor. I feel bad because I let my community down,” Nix said. “I was wrong and I didn’t realize it. I overdid it and it was wrong.

The charges against Nix stemmed from a burglary at a home in the 1100 block of Pierce Avenue on January 16, 2023. Nix was also linked to a reported burglary at an apartment building in the 500 block of 20th Street in January period. 18 and 19, which are under the control of the same owners as the Pierce Avenue property,

He was never charged in connection with the incident on 20th Street.

The break-in on Pierce Avenue resulted in an estimated $30,000 in property damage and the alleged theft of $1,500 in construction equipment.

The property was being renovated by Rod Davis, a Western New York developer whose firm, Power City Ventures, LLC, had been designated by the city as the preferred developer for a housing renovation project that was eligible for a repayable grant of up to to 1 million dollars. funds through the Restore New York state program. Davis later withdrew from the renovation project.

Nix claimed Davis owed him $13,000 for work his construction company did on properties controlled by Power City.

“He was led to believe he wasn’t going to get paid,” Giove said.

Nix, who served nine years in prison following his guilty plea to a manslaughter charge as a teenager, is challenging incumbent Falls Mayor Robert Restaino in the June 2023 Democratic primary election. He is also running for mayoralty in the 2023 general election, his We All We Got party line.

The activist said political leaders in Louisiana asked him to bring his We All We Got movement to their state.