A Niles man who assaulted a person with a dangerous weapon after breaking and entering received a minimum of 40 months to a maximum of 15 years in the Michigan Department of Corrections by Judge Angela Pasula.
Dustin Taylor Ford, 25, pleaded guilty to home invasion in the second degree and to assault with a dangerous weapon, but without intent to commit the crime of murder or inflict great bodily harm, according to Ford’s records.
Ford was reported to have broken into a home in the 500 block of Hawthorne in Niles on Feb. 19 with the intent to break in.
He allegedly saw that the garage door was open and went inside. Ford’s attorney Brian Holt, said Ford told him he was on drugs when he made the decision to go inside the house.
“I was not in the right state of mind, due to the influence of drugs,” Ford said during court Monday.

A struggle then ensued between the victim and Ford, leaving the victim with a gash in the knee area, which required seven stitches.
There was also a cut on the victim’s hand. Ford also reportedly bit the man on his arm, leaving traces of his DNA.
Ford’s prior record includes having been to prison once and jail four times. Pasula also said Ford has a record of drug usage in the past, including meth and opiates. Ford said he had been struggling with drug addiction for up to five years.
“You went into someone else’s garage and you were going to steal property,” Pasula said. “You can’t take property that does not belong to you, whether it is a drug problem or anything else.”
Holt asked the judge to consider that Ford had only gone inside the garage and had not attempted to break into any other part of the house.
Ford said his client’s action were outside of his normal character that evening because he was on drugs. Holt said that Ford was working to build a positive future for himself. He had enrolled to get his GED and was planning to be a welder.
Ford was apologetic for his actions when it was his turn to speak and said he wanted help in recovering from addiction. In addition, he said he took full responsibility for his actions.
Pasula said she was disheartened by Ford’s prior record and it showed that he hadn’t put in much effort into staying out of trouble and turning his life around.
She recommended he receive drug assessment/treatment in addition to prison time.