'Cleveland the Clown' behind bars again

March 12-- Mar. 12--A convicted sex offender, once known to the Norwalk community as "Cleveland the Clown," is behind bars again, this time for allegedly breaking into his former place of employment.

A Huron County grand jury recently indicted Andrew M. Grose on charges of vandalism and two counts of breaking and entering, all fifth-degree felonies.

Grose, 37, of 41 W. Willard Ave., pleaded " not guilty" last week in Huron County Common Pleas Court and received an April 16 trial date. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 19.

Erie County prosecutor Kevin Baxter was appointed as the special prosecutor for the case because of a conflict of interest in the Huron County Prosecutor's Office.

The charges against Grose stem from an incident on Jan. 20 when Grose allegedly broke into his former employer on Garfield Street a week after he was fired, according to a Norwalk police report.

When police approached Grose on the street, he allegedly threw a key on the ground. He denied going inside the building and claimed he was allowed to be there, police said.

The supervisor said Grose was not allowed to be there and the key belonged to the compressor at the business, the report states.

Grose remains jailed, unable to post a $5,000 bond.

In August 2015, Grose received an 11-month prison sentence for trafficking in marijuana. He addressed his substance abuse and mental illness in detail during the sentencing hearing.

At age 18, Grose was diagnosed with depression. Five years later, he had a diagnosis of schizophrenia. The Norwalk man also said he has "conversion disorder."

"When my schizophrenia kicked in, I started to drink," said Grose, who admitted to being in nearly all the Toledo-area mental hospitals over the years.

A month before his sentencing, Grose overdosed in the common pleas courtroom. The Reflector observed the defendant speaking incoherently and later putting his head on the table, unresponsive. Two police officers and a probation officer had to carry the unconscious man out of the courtroom. North Central EMS took him to Fisher-Titus Medical Center. After being treated, he was booked into the jail. Officials determined Grose tested positive for five drugs.

Grose's criminal history includes two trafficking-indrugs convictions and one for unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. He got a then-16-year-old girl pregnant; the two worked together at the same business. James Joel Sitterly, then a defense attorney who now serves as Huron County prosecutor, said the sex was "consensual in nature" and the girl's parents "were upset she chose Mr. Grose."

Sitterly attributed much of Grose's criminal activity to drug abuse stemming from his mental disorders.

"He has had to selfmedicate," Sitterly said at the sentencing.

In July 2006, Grose received a 90-day jail sentence on the workrelease program for attempted unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. As part of his five years of probation, he was fined $500 and had to pay $2,500 for the cost of his child's birth.

Grose was involved in clowning ministry with his grandfather -- Fred Stanford aka "Fritz the Clown" -- for many years. Known as "Cleveland the Clown," Grose donated his time for charity and raised money for people in Norwalk.

The Reflector published a feature on Grose's clowning ministry in July 2012. Soon after the story ran, the newspaper received an online tip from a reader about him being a sex offender. A few days after the feature, there was a subsequent story published with the headline "'Cleveland the Clown' is a registered sex offender," which detailed the sex case.

Looking at Grose's criminal history, Judge Jim Conway said Grose quit various treatment programs midway through them and violated his bond in this case. "It's fair to say you haven't done well on supervision in the past," Conway told Grose. "We can't have you out in the community, continuing to traffic drugs."

Editor's Note: Michael Harrington of Tandem Media Network contributed to this article.

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