Man Accused of Making Explosives Pleads Guilty to Reduced Charge

The , at pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted unlawful possession of a dangerous ordnance Thursday in .

While Stephen Bull could still face up to nine months in jail when he is sentenced, that is still much less time than he would have faced had he been convicted of his original charges.

Bull, 21, was arraigned on felony charges of .

However, Mentor City Prosecutor Lisa Klammer agreed to a plea deal that let Bull plead guilty to the reduced charge. He also pleaded guilty to a drug paraphernalia charge because police found a glass pipe while searching his apartment.

Bull, who is a first-time offender, was not sentenced Thursday. Instead, he'll undergo a psychiatric evaluation first, according to Mentor Municipal Court records.

Police came to Bull's apartment last week when they received reports of an explosion on his apartment's balcony. The explosion did not damage any property or hurt anyone but it did create a lot of smoke.

Bull admitted to causing the explosion by igniting aluminum powder and potassium per chlorate inside a plastic container on the balcony of his apartment, Mentor Police Lt. Ken Zbiegien said.

When police searched Bull's apartment and his car, they found a pipe bomb in his trunk and more materials used to make explosives.

As part of the plea agreement, police can destroy the pipe bomb and other explosive ingredients they confiscated from Bull.