Makakilo firefighter
gets probation
for fondling girls
A 32-year-old firefighter was sentenced to one year of probation and four consecutive weekends in jail for fondling two teenage girls last summer.
Kevin Uhrle was initially charged last July with four felony counts of third-degree sexual assault, offenses punishable by up to 20 years in prison. He pleaded to four misdemeanor counts of fourth-degree sexual assault in March.
Uhrle choked up in court yesterday as he apologized to his family, the girls and the judge for his conduct.
Circuit Judge Richard Perkins said Uhrle took advantage of the girls' eagerness and inexperience when he agreed to meet them at the younger teen's Kailua home last summer.
Uhrle admitted to fondling the girls, 13 and 14, in the back yard on June 15, 2002. He apparently met the girls through an Internet chatroom and had been speaking to the younger girl by telephone and over the Internet.
Perkins said Uhrle likely would not receive sex offender treatment if he went to jail, increasing the chances that he could commit the crime again. But he said some jail was necessary because of the seriousness of the offense.
One of the girls had represented to him that she was 17, but he apparently told them he was 17 or 18, Perkins said.
He ordered Uhrle to also complete 100 hours of community service.
Deputy prosecutor Tina Zipp had asked that Uhrle, a fireman for seven years, be ordered to serve at least six months in jail, saying he not only violated the community's trust, but that of the girls and their parents.
Uhrle was assigned to the Makakilo Fire Station at the time of the offense, his attorney Paul Cunney said yesterday. He said Uhrle has shown he is taking responsibility by pleading guilty to the charges and is "paying big time for his stupidity."
Uhrle will have to register as a sex offender.
Uhrle also faces the uncertainty of what will happen to his job. Uhrle said Fire Department officials have indicated they would wait until after his sentencing to decide what action, if any, they will take against him.
Fire Department spokesman Capt. Emmit Kane confirmed that Fire Chief Attilio Leonardi would have to review Uhrle's case before any action is taken.
He said Uhrle is currently assigned as a support person doing inventory at the Waipahu storeroom where hoses and other firefighting equipment are kept.
