Shepherd sentenced to prison in stabbing case

A Sandusky man who stabbed his girlfriend was sentenced Thursday to one year in prison as part of a plea agreement.Shawn Shepherd, 39, pleaded guilty to a charge of aggravated assault, in exchange for Erie County prosecutors dismissing charges of attempted murder and domestic violence.Shepherd will serve a year in prison, and will also be under supervision for a year after his release.In March, Shepherd and Patricia Pool, 46, argued at Pool's Dixon Drive home about her wanting to end the relationship.At some point, Shepherd stabbed Pool in the neck. Shepherd then fled the home, leaving Pool to call 911 for help as she struggled to breath.Minutes later, acting police Chief Charlie Sams found Shepherd knocking on the door of a McDonough Street home. Officers ordered him to the ground at gunpoint, but Shepherd ran.Police said Shepherd pulled items from his pocket during the pursuit -- such as a large group of keys -- as if pretending to have a weapon in hopes of provoking officers to fire on him.Shepherd has a violent criminal history, including a prior conviction for involuntary manslaughter.Ryan Miday, spokesman at Cuyahoga County prosecutor's office, previously said the manslaughter case originated from a September 1991 robbery where three men beat another man and left him handcuffed in a bathroom. The man died a day later in a Cleveland hospital.Chief Assistant Prosecutor Mary Ann Barylski said prosecutors review a defendant's criminal record prior to sentencing. Prosecutors reached an agreement with Shepherd after interviewing Pool and reviewing evidence in the case.Pool spent time alone in the home and kept a weapon under her pillow, Barylski said.It was Pool who pulled the knife out at some point during the argument, Barylski said."We looked at the case and what the victim would have testified to," she said. "It supported an aggravated assault charge because she had the weapon first."In the interim of him trying to get the knife away, she was harmed," Barylski said.RELATED STORY:Sandusky man allegedly stabs girlfriend in neck