Lawyer: Man sentence for crime he can't recall after wreck

BUTLER, Pa. (AP) -- A western Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to a year's probation for crimes his defense attorney says the man can't recall because of a brain injury suffered in a car accident.

Defense attorney Stephen Misko also says 23-year-old Christian Eshenbaugh has become a "completely different person" as he struggles to regain his memory and motor skills - and no longer has a penchant for petty crimes fueled by drug use.

The Butler Eagle ( http://bit.ly/1AZ41E8 ) reports Eshenbaugh pleaded guilty to stealing aluminum tire rims 20 to 30 at a time from a salvage yard. In all, he took more than 2,000 rims worth more than $33,000 in the two months before he was injured in 2013.

At Wednesday's sentencing, Misko says Eshenbaugh has "turned his life 180 degrees."

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Information from: Butler Eagle, http://www.butlereagle.com

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