Man sentenced in snowmobile assault; liquor store burglarized

The donation of his snowmobile, 30 days in jail and a host of fines were part of the sentence for a man convicted of misdemeanor aggravated assault stemming from a February snowmobile incident.

In what was supposed to be his preliminary hearing date, Gregg Gemmet had his charge of felony aggravated assault lowered to a misdemeanor in an agreement Thursday at El Dorado County Superior Court.

Gemmet was accused of hitting Ron Thompson, an officer with the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, in the knee with his snowmobile when confronted that he was riding in an off-limits territory near Freel Peak.

As part of the sentencing, Gemmet was ordered to pay full restitution for Thompson's injuries and pay for a pass at Heavenly Mountain Resort, which Thompson was partly unable to use last season because of the injury, according to Assistant District Attorney Hans Uthe.

Gemmet was also ordered to donate his snowmobile to El Dorado County search and rescue team, write a letter of apology to a newspaper and speak to a snowmobile group, Uthe said.

"We will not tolerate any abuse of these rangers," Uthe said.

Gemmet is a mechanic with Tahoe-Douglas Fire Protection District.

In other news:

-- An undisclosed amount of money was taken from Ski Run Liquor and Market when an early-morning employee found doors open, a cash register open and a money bag on the floor, authorities said.

The burglary took place sometime between 11:30 on Tuesday night and 7:15 Wednesday morning, a South Lake Tahoe police officer said.