Man involved in chase gets more than two years

A federal judge in Mobile agreed Wednesday to give a break to a man who was involved in a burglary, shooting and high-speed chase last year in Chunchula.

U.S. District Judge William Steele sentenced Ronald Lafrance Lott Jr., 20, of Mobile to two years and three months in prison for possession of stolen firearms. That was about half as long as Lott could have gotten under advisory sentencing guidelines.

The sentence comes a week after Steele imposed a 17½-year prison term on Lott's co-defendant, Nance Ray Harris, who law enforcement authorities say shot at a man who interrupted the burglary.

Harris was driving the sport utility vehicle that Mobile County sheriff's deputies chased Oct. 24.

Lott's attorney, Dom Soto, said his client has battled drug addiction and struggled to make ends meet since dropping out of high school when his girlfriend got pregnant. He said Lott foolishly allowed Harris to talk him into the burglary on Gulfcrest Road and Lott did not know guns would be involved.

"He's not the one who shot at anyone. He's not the one who was driving. And he immediately took steps to rectify his mistake," Soto said. "His problem is he's more of a sheep and blindly follows what people suggest to him."

Lott appeared contrite at Wednesday's hearing, telling Steele that he hoped to use his prison term to get closer to God.

"I'm willing to do anything to make it right," Lott said. "I've been incarcerated 10 months, and I've been saved six."

Lott and Harris admitted that they broke into the house on Gulfcrest Road and stole several pistols and rifles. When the homeowner's father interrupted the burglary, Harris shot at him and ordered him to get back, according to court records.

The burglars then led deputies on a pursuit that ended with a brief foot chase after the SUV flipped over and slammed into a power pole.

"But for the grace of God, somebody could have gotten killed here -- including you," Steele told Lott.

Lott faces a first-degree burglary charge in Mobile County Circuit Court, but Soto said he hopes state prosecutors move to drop that charge in light of the federal conviction.