Community activist and former mayoral candidate sentenced to six months in jail
Nov. 6—LOCKPORT — A Falls community activist and former mayoral candidate left a county courtroom Wednesday afternoon in handcuffs after asking a Niagara County Court judge to sentence him to jail rather than probation.
Judge John Ottaviano told Demetreus Nix that he felt "stuck between a rock and a hard place" in deciding how to sentence him in a felony burglary case. Nix, 38, had faced a prison term of 1 1/3 to four years in prison for his guilty plea to a single count of attempted second-degree criminal mischief, an E-level felony.
He was originally charged in a grand jury indictment with counts of third-degree burglary, second-degree criminal mischief and petit larceny for a January 2023 break-in at a Pierce Avenue home that he had been hired to renovate.
At the time of his plea, Ottaviano told Nix that he would sentence him to "no more than 1 year in the Niagara County jail," if he paid $32,000 in restitution to his victim before his sentencing date. Nix made that payment, leading his defense attorney, Rodney Giove, to ask Ottaviano for an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal (ACD) or a conditional discharge, both of which would have spared Nix time behind bars.
"There was a substantial restitution made in this case," Giove said. "Mr. Nix understands what he did, he knows he was wrong."
Giove also said the victim in the case would support a sentence without jail time.
But Assistant District Attorney David DeChellis objected, saying Nix's previous criminal record required more punishment. The assistant DA asked for a one-year jail term.
While Ottaviano said he could sentence Nix to probation, Giove said his client was eager to move on from the case.
"He just wants to serve whatever sentence is handed down today," Giove said, indicating his client was looking to move to Louisiana after his jail term. "He has determined this area is not the area for him."
Ottaviano said he viewed a conditional discharge as "too lenient" and told Nix we would spend the next six months at the Niagara County jail.
The owner of Nix Construction and Property Management and founder of the Entrepreneur School of Thought said at the time of his plea that he accepted the offer from prosecutors because he felt it would allow him and his family to "move forward." On Wednesday he apologized to the court and his "community."
"I want to apologize to your honor. I feel bad 'cause I let my community down," Nix said. "I did wrong and I didn't realize it. I overreacted and it was wrong.
The charges against Nix stemmed from a break-in at a home in the 1100 block of Pierce Avenue on Jan. 16, 2023. Nix was also linked to a reported burglary at an apartment building in the 500 block of 20th Street, between Jan. 18 and 19, which is under the control of the same owners as the Pierce Avenue property,
He was never charged in connection with the 20th Street incident.
The Pierce Avenue break-in resulted in an estimated $30,000 in damages to the property and the alleged theft of $1,500 in construction equipment.
The property was being renovated by Rod Davis, a Western New York developer, whose firm, Power City Ventures, LLC, had been designated by the city as the preferred developer for a housing renovation project that was eligible for up to $1 million in reimbursable grant funds through the state's Restore New York program. Davis later withdrew from the renovation project.
Nix claimed that Davis owed him $13,000 for work his construction company performed at the Power City-controlled properties.
"He was led to believe he wasn't going to get paid," Giove said.
Nix, who served nine years in prison following his guilty plea to a manslaughter charge as a teenager, challenged incumbent Falls Mayor Robert Restaino in the June 2023 Democratic mayoral primary election. He also ran for mayor in the 2023 general election his We All We Got party line.
The activist said political leaders in Louisiana have asked him to bring his We All We Got movement to their state.
