Plea deal

A judge is considering a plea deal for one of four men charged in a chase resulting in the death of a police dog. 22 year old Mark Hunter pleaded guilty yesterday in Rutland District Court to possession of stolen property. Hunter was initially charged with crimes that carry a 20-year maximum. The lesser charge will probably result in a 3 year sentence. Judge Thomas Zonay will have to approve the deal in which Hunter is sentenced to 39 to 40 months and forfeits half the $2,325 seized from him at his arrest. Hunter is one of four men whom police say fled the scene of a nonfatal shooting in Leicester last year, stopping in Mendon to steal a vehicle in an ultimately unsuccessful effort to evade police. In the course of the chase, a State Police cruiser hit and killed a police dog. Charges are still pending against the other three.