17 appear for CP Court criminal hearings

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

It was another busy week in Van Wert County Common Pleas Court, with three arraignments, several sentencings, and a number of plea changes among the 17 hearings held.

Ashley Workman, 34, of Lima, entered a not guilty plea to a charge of theft, a felony of the fifth degree. She was released on an unsecured personal surety bond and will appear for a pretrial conference at 8 a.m. Wednesday, October 3.

Douglas Lambert, 46, of Ottawa, also pleaded not guilty to a fifth-degree felony theft count. He was also released on a surety bond and will appear for a pretrial conference at 8 a.m. October 3.

Benjamin Agnew, 23, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, entered a not guilty plea to a charge of improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle, a felony of the fourth degree. He was released on a surety bond and will appear for a pretrial conference at 9 a.m. October 3.

Four people were also sentenced on Wednesday.

Joshua Sargent, 37, of Van Wert, was given 16 months in prison, with credit for 61 days already served, on a charge of domestic violence.

Richard Raber, 26, of Van Wert, was sentenced to 180 days in jail on one count of aggravated possession of drugs, a felony of the fifth degree. He was given credit for 109 days already served.

Korbin Taylor, 20, of Van Wert, was given 180 days in jail on one count of aggravated possession of drugs, and two counts of forgery, each a felony of the fifth degree. The two forgery sentences are to run concurrent with each other, but consecutive to the drug possession sentence, for a total of 360 days in jail. He was also given credit for 94 days already served.

Nicholas Parrish, 33, of Ohio City, was given three years of community control on a charge of domestic violence, a felony of the fourth degree. As part of his probation, Parrish must continue counseling and not use drugs or alcohol without a prescription.

Seven people appeared in court to enter changes of plea. They included:

Michael Malone, 55, of Van Wert, changed his plea to guilty to possession of heroin, a felony of the fifth degree. Judge Martin D. Burchfield ordered a presentence investigation in the case and scheduled sentencing for 9 a.m. Wednesday, October 31.

Kyley Gardner, 30, of Van Wert, changed her plea to guilty to two counts of aggravated possession of drugs, each a felony of the fifth degree. She was then sentenced to 180 days in jail on each charge to be served concurrent to each other and a current jail sentence in Putnam County/

Dusty Waltmire, 37, of Van Wert, changed his plea to guilty to an amended charge of possession of cocaine, a felony of the third degree. A presentence investigation was ordered and he will appear for sentencing at 9 a.m. October 31.

Michael Elston-Neal, 26, of Van Wert, changed his plea to guilty to one count of aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony. He then requested, and was granted, intervention in lieu of conviction, and his case was stayed pending his successful completion of a substance abuse treatment program.

Theodore King, 33, of Convoy, changed his plea to guilty to a prosecutor’s bill of information charging him with unauthorized use of property, a misdemeanor of the fourth degree. Sentencing will be held at 9 a.m. Wednesday, October 10.

Blaine Fromm, 27, of Lima, entered a guilty plea to one count of theft, a felony of the fifth degree. He then requested, and was granted, intervention in lieu of conviction, and his case was put on hold until he completes a treatment program.

Rex Keysor, 48, of Van Wert, changed his plea to guilty to one count of theft, a misdemeanor of the first degree, and two fifth-degree felony counts of trafficking in heroin and aggravated possession of drugs. No other action was taken in the case on Wednesday.

Two people admitted to violating their probation during hearings held Wednesday.

Brendan Bergman, 23, of Van Wert, admitted that he violated his probation by failing to provide his address and by leaving the county without permission. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail, with credit for 16 days already served.

Dwayne Watts, 32, of Ottawa, had a sentencing hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. October 31 after he admitted to violating his probation by being terminated from the Western Ohio Regional Treatment and Habilitation (WORTH) Center in Lima. A $50,000 cash/commercial surety bond was set in the case.

Jessie Zartman, 40, of Toledo, signed a waiver of his constitutional right to a speedy trial in open court and requested additional time to prepare his defense. He was released on a surety bond and will appear for a pretrial conference at 9 a.m. October 31.