The sentence means a felony charge of willful injury resulting in bodily injury against Stepanek will be dismissed and expunged, as long as he does not commit a crime during a three-year term of probation. Judge Paul Miller also suspended a $1,025 civil fine.
Offenders who commit "forcible felonies" are not eligible for deferred judgments, but the charge to which Stepanek pleaded is not considered one under Iowa law. He was also eligible for the break because he did not have a criminal history.
Stepanek's attorney John Bruzek said his client was influenced by social media and political rhetoric characterizing the protesters as dangerous criminals. Stepanek initially believed he was legally justified but has come to see he was wrong and apologized, Bruzek said.
"Michael understands how his conduct could have resulted in a much more serious and harmful situation," he said.
The Johnson County Attorney's Office, which agreed to Stepanek's plea deal, could face accusations of double standards as it continues to pursue charges against some Black Lives Matter protesters involved in the demonstrations last summer.
The Double Standard
Prosecutors are pursuing 15 counts, including nine felonies, against a protest leader charged with shining a laser beam light in police officers' eyes in August.
A 20-year-old Black protester who carried an assault rifle through an Iowa City crowd in June has been indicted on a federal charge of illegally possessing a gun while using marijuana. The man, who faces up to 10 years in prison, had already been prosecuted by Johnson County on related charges after the gun was found during a traffic stop following the protest.
Separately in Des Moines, prosecutors are pursuing felony leak charges against two protesters accused of stealing an intelligence bulletin from an officer and giving it to a television reporter.
