Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Probation for Ex-Student

Former Georgetown student William Thiele pleaded guilty in D.C. Superior Court Friday to carrying a pistol without a license and was sentenced to 18 months probation after he shot a toilet during Midnight Madness last October.

Thiele, who goes by Alex, will serve his probation in California, his home state. He must also give $100 to the District of Columbia’s Crime Victims Compensation Fund and is required by law to register as a gun offender in the District. He faced up to five years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine for the charge, which is a felony.

Should Thiele successfully complete his probation, his record will be cleared. The Federal Probation Service will set the terms of his probation upon his return to California; Thiele was scheduled to fly back to his home state on Saturday.

Thiele, who is no longer affiliated with Georgetown, said during the hearing that he planned to re-enroll in college in the fall, but he was not sure where.

Thiele was a freshman when, at about 10:20 p.m. on Oct. 16, 2009, he fired one shot from a handgun at a toilet in a men’s bathroom at McDonough Gymnasium while Midnight Madness was taking place in the same building. Thiele, who was intoxicated at the time, was arrested in Village C West about 40 minutes later.

According to police reports, the gun belonged to U.S. Park Police Officer Sherice Clanton, who was off duty in the gymnasium when her gun went missing. According to Thiele’s attorney, Mark Schamel, Clanton left her purse on the bleachers and turned around at one point to find the contents of the purse scattered and her gun missing.

Following a preliminary hearing in October, a judge ordered that Thiele be placed in his parents’ custody in California.

[Read the original Saxaspeak post here.](https://saxaspeak.thehoya.com/2010/02/26/midnight-madness-shooter-pleads-guilty/)”

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