Related Coverage

Jayson Mosley was sentenced to eight years in prison Thursday morning for stealing a laptop from a car in Germantown in August 2009.

Mosley, 24, of Germantown, was convicted of the crime in January.

His attorney, Theresa Chernosky, asked Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Mary Beth McCormick on Thursday to count the 309 days Mosley has served in jail and release him to a mental health institution where he could get help for ADHD and bipolar disorder.

Before McCormick handed down the sentence, she looked at Mosley and told him she did not think probation would help him. Mosley faced a maximum of 15 years in jail for the crime.

"We'll appeal the sentence within 30 days," Chernosky said after the sentencing. "I think he's young and has a lot to deal with."

Mosley could face 12 additional years in jail when he is sentenced on July 8 by circuit court Judge Nelson Rupp for a probation violation. He was on probation when he broke into a Lincoln Navigator in the 18800 block of Poppy Seed Lane in Germantown, took the laptop and tried to pawn it in Frederick, said Stephen Chaikin, an assistant state's attorney. Chaikin said Mosley has admitted to breaking into more than 200 cars in his lifetime and has been convicted 14 times, mostly for burglaries.

Dressed in a dark green jump suit, Mosley stood behind a table in the court room next to Chernosky and asked McCormick for help. Mosley said he was nervous and wanted to get everything over with. Mosley repeatedly apologized for all of the people he victimized.

"I just want to get everything over with," Mosley said in court. "I want to move on with my life, but it's hard."

Chernosky told McCormick that Mosley grew up having little interaction with his father, who battled with a drug addiction, and does not have a relationship with his mother. She said Mosley started drinking and doing drugs by the time he was 12. Chernosky also told McCormick that Mosley is scheduled to take a test for his GED in two weeks.

Mosley's father, with whom Chernosky said her client has built a strong relationship, sat in the quiet court room Thursday. Mosley's father and a man who identified himself as Mosley's uncle both declined to give their names or comment. They frequently shifted their eyes from Mosley to the judge.

Mosley's father reacted with a blank stare when McCormick announced the sentence.

"What Mr. Mosley needs is to be in an inpatient mental health program," Chernosky said.

The case against Mosley is about protecting the community from a one-man crime wave, said Chaikin who prosecuted the case. Mosley has been convicted of intimidating at least one witness. Although not a violent offender, he needs to be held accountable for his crimes, Chaikin told McCormick.

"I think the buck stops here."