Former publisher gets prison time

TIFFIN — Christopher Dixon, the ex-publisher of the Advertiser-Tribune of Tiffin, on Monday was sentenced to 18 months in prison after he stole more than $800,000 from the paper. Dixon, 55, was sentenced in Seneca County Common Pleas Court after he admitted to the theft over an eight-year period. In late October, Dixon entered a guilty plea to aggravated theft, a third-degree felony. Along with his prison term, Dixon is also to pay $197,977 in restitution to the Advertiser-Tribune. "I hurt the people and things I love most in my life," Dixon said in an address to Judge Steve Shuff. "I messed up and it was on the very front pages I served for over 30 years." Dixon's lawyer, Stevin Groth, asked Shuff to consider five character letters from Dixon's family and friends, which the judge did examine before issuing the sentence. "These letters speak to everything else about Chris," Groth said. "Who he is as a father, a friend and a husband. He is, as a person, fundamentally pretty good." Groth also alluded to the extended length of Dixon's theft, saying it became a habit for Dixon over the years. "There is no good excuse for taking that money," Groth said. "Over time it became a sort of standard practice." Shuff sentenced Dixon to 18 months in state prison, six months longer than the state's recommendation of 12 months. "Is a one-time incident worse than something going on for eight years?" Shuff said. "I'll leave that question up to the philosophers. Theft is theft." It was not immediately clear Monday where Dixon will serve his prison sentence.