YOUNGSTOWN — The last time Austin Swiger stood before a judge in early May, he was being sentenced to three to 4 1/2 years in prison for firing a gun at a car.

He understood at the time prosecutors would not oppose a type of early release from prison approved by a judge called judicial release after serving six months in prison.

But on Wednesday, Swiger became the first defendant in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court to be permitted to begin the process to enter a new Re-Entry Court.

The program requires him to be assessed for his suitability for the program and then spend about 18 months under a type of intensive supervision instead of completing his entire prison sentence.

If Swiger fails to complete the program successfully, he could go back to prison.

But Swiger told Judge Anthony Donofrio, who oversees the new Re-Entry Court, he is “ready for a second chance” and wants to participate in the program.

Swiger, 24, of High Avenue, Niles, and his co-defendant, Merrissa C. Durda, 34, of Forest Springs Drive SE, Howland, pleaded guilty to improperly discharging a firearm into a habitation. The offense carries a prison sentence of up to eight years.

Prosecutors said Swiger and Durda shot at the vehicle while trying to retrieve it Dec. 9, 2022, from a relative on Elmwood Avenue near Meridian Road in Austintown.

At least one shot hit a nearby house, said Mike Yacovone, county assistant prosecutor.

“Guns were fired in a residential area,” Yacovone said.

A relative had taken a car belonging to Durda and Swiger, Yacovone said. They found the car and fired guns at it, as it was being driven away. Yacovone called their actions “reckless.” No one was injured.

Swiger apologized at the hearing and said “I know that my actions could have led to much worse” and a possibly much worse prison sentence.

Durda also had a judicial release hearing Wednesday before Donofrio, but she did not ask to participate in the Re-Entry Court. Donofrio allowed her to leave prison.

The reason her case is different is she was deemed to be a low-risk offender. Individuals deemed low-risk are not eligible for the Re-Entry Court.

According to an informational handout on the new court, its purpose is to “help returning citizens transition from incarceration to the community by providing support, education, access to treatment and mental health services, housing and employment.”

A reentry team will monitor a participant’s progress through regular appearances before the judge. Team members review client progress while providing resources and support.

“The goal is to see participants have a successful reintegration process and not return to incarceration,” the handout states.