A former Edwardsburg police officer is officially facing the consequences of failing to uphold the tenets of “serve and protect.”

Cass County Circuit Judge Michael Dodge sentenced Jesse Vincent Holmes, 24, of Dowagiac, to two years of probation on Friday for first-degree home invasion. He pleaded no contest to the charge when he appeared in the court previously on May 19.

According to the court, the charge stems from an incident that occurred on Dec. 24. Holmes, who had been working for the department for around six months, responded to a medical call from a residence on South Shore Drive. Holmes assisted EMT personnel who were present at the scene, helping them escort one of the residents to the hospital.

Around 20 minutes later, after the scene had been cleared, Holmes returned to the residence, turned the lights off of his squad car and entered the home through a sliding glass door. Once inside, he removed a container of hydrocodone pills from the home.

“You later thought better of your actions, and you flushed those drugs, by your admission, down the toilet,” Dodge said. “The only thing that was ever found was the prescription bottle in dumpster behind the police department, where you said you had tossed it.”

Holmes was dismissed from Edwardsburg police following his arrest.

In his arguments to the judge, Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz argued that Holmes should receive prison time for his actions.

“For a healthy society to exist, it’s critical that the public have trust in their law enforcement officers,” Fitz said. “This defendant betrayed that trust by his criminal activity on this occasion, and he continued to betray that trust by his rationalization of his criminal behavior. There is no excuse for his actions on the day in question. It was shameful conduct for any citizen, let alone a police officer.”

Prior to the incident, Holmes had not had committed any prior offenses, said his attorney, Thomas Schaeffer.

“He is distraught in himself for what he has done,” Schaeffer said. “He realizes that he has committed a felony, and he has to live with that. Trying to get a job in the area where he trained in is going to be difficult.”

While expressing remorse for the theft in his remarks to the judge, Holmes did not offer a reason for why he returned to the scene and took the pills from the home.

“Your criminals actions remains a mystery to the court,” Dodge said. “I don’t know that, if your own mind, you have a satisfactory explanation as to why you entered the home to do that.”

As part of his probation, Holmes was given 300 hours of community service. His required 365-day jail sentence was suspended by the court, pending successful completion of his probation.

Also sentenced Friday:

• Sarah Gerstoff, 44, of South Bend, to 90 days in jail for buying and selling nonferrous metals.

• Brian White, 42, of Lakeville, Indiana, to 90 days in jail for resisting and obstructing police.

• Daniel Paul Evans, 47, to 15 years in prison for first-degree criminal sexual conduct.

• Hugh Lane Jr., 50, of Cassopolis, to 60 days in jail for failure to register as a sex offender.

• Michael Allen Reeves, 22, of Dowagiac, to two years of probation and 300 days in jail for forgery