Man rejects final offer in drug case

Published 9:06 am Thursday, September 21, 2017

A Detroit, Michigan man rejected the state’s final offer in a drug trafficking case at Lawrence County Common Pleas Court on Wednesday.

Bernard Waller, 28, of 21690 Bennett Street, Detroit, Michigan, previously pleaded not guilty to trafficking in drugs (Oxycodone), a felony of the second-degree.

In late March of this year, officers from the Lawrence County Drug and Major Crimes Task Force arrested Waller at the Grandview Inn in South Point after a search warrant was obtained for a room at the hotel.

Email newsletter signup

The warrant was obtained based on information gathered during a traffic stop the day before, where 40 Oxycodone tablets were found. During the search of the hotel room, officers also seized more than $24,000 in cash.

On Wednesday, the state’s final offer to Waller was six years in prison, with him facing a maximum of eight years if found guilty at trial.

Lawrence County Common Pleas Judge Andy Ballard set trial for Oct. 26 and 27.

In other cases:

• David Dupree, 37, of 615 Fourth Street, Huntington, West Virginia, pleaded guilty to three fifth-degree and two fourth-degree counts of receiving stolen property. Judge Ballard sentenced him to 12 months in prison.

• Courtney Gallion, 38, of 411 N. Sixth Street, Ironton, denied community-controlled sanctions (CCS) violations. Judge Ballard set sentencing for Sept. 27.

• James Morris, 42, of 6284 County Road 6, Ironton, admitted CCS violations. Judge Ballard sentenced him to 10 months in prison.

• Danny Sellards, 35, of 84 Township Road 1337, South Point, admitted CCS violations. Judge Ballard sentenced him to 11 months in prison on one of his original counts and 17 months in prison another original count to run consecutively for a total of 28 months in prison, and ordered him to pay court costs. Sellards is also facing two additional years in prison in another pending case.

• Doris Sharp, 25, of 18025 State Route 93, Pedro, pleaded not guilty to possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony. Judge Ballard set bond at $50,000 cash or surety and $75,000 OR.

• Brandon Sites, 28, of 1947 County Road 415, Pedro, pleaded not guilty to complicity to counterfeit controlled substances, a felony of the fourth-degree. Judge Ballard set bond at $50,000 cash or surety and $100,000 OR.

• Samuel Frye, 39, of 668 Louis Subdivision Road, Huntington, West Virginia, pleaded not guilty to theft, a fifth-degree felony. Judge Ballard set bond at $2,500 cash or surety and $25,000 OR. Trial was set for Oct. 11.

• Jeremiah Doss, 32, of 13013 State Route 243, Chesapeake, pleaded guilty to possession of drugs (methamphetamine), a fifth-degree felony. He was eligible for intervention in lieu of conviction. Judge Ballard ordered him to continue completing outpatient rehab and to abstain from alcohol and illegal drugs for one year. If after one year Doss doesn’t have any violations, Ballard agreed to dismiss the charge.

• Jason Carpenter, age and address unknown, admitted CCS violations. Judge Charles Cooper sentenced him to nine months in prison.

• Mandy Johnson, 44, of 95 Private Drive 887, Ironton, previously pleaded not guilty to felonious assault, a second-degree felony. On Wednesday, she rejected the state’s final offer of five years in prison. With the felonious assault charge, Johnson faces a maximum of eight years in prison if found guilty at trial. Judge Cooper set trial for Oct. 2.

• Ric Massie, 47, of 105 Private Drive 567, Proctorville, previously pleaded guilty to theft, a felony of the fourth-degree. Judge Cooper sentenced him to six months in prison and ordered him to pay $15,433 in restitution.

• Samuel Patrick, 20, of 179 Township Road 1233, Proctorville, admitted CCS violations. Judge Cooper continued his CCS and ordered him to complete the STAR relapse program.

• Cheyenne Belville, 18, of 1412 S. First Street, Ironton, pleaded not guilty to receiving stolen property, a fourth-degree felony. Judge Cooper set bond at $15,000 cash or surety and set pretrial for Oct 4.

• Rick Carter, 22, of 2533 S. Sixth Street, Ironton, pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property, a fourth-degree felony. Judge Cooper sentenced him to four years CCS under intensive supervised probation (ISP) with 17 months reserved, 30 days in jail with credit for time served, 200 hours community service, and ordered him to pay $325 in restitution. As part of the plea agreement, Carter also agreed to testify against his co-defendant, Cheyenne Belville.

• Travis Edwards, 24, of 906 McGovney Street, Ironton, pleaded not guilty to possession of drugs (methamphetamine), a fifth-degree felony. Judge Cooper set bond at $5,000 cash or surety and set pretrial for Sept. 27.

• Preston Curry, 41, of 1173 County Road 1, Lot 59, South Point, admitted CCS violations and pleaded guilty to two counts of trafficking in drugs (cocaine), felonies of the fifth-degree, one count of trafficking in drugs (cocaine), a felony of the fifth-degree and one count of trafficking in heroin, a fourth-degree felony. Judge Cooper set bond at $25,000 OR and ordered him to remain on GPS monitoring until sentencing. Sentencing was set for Sept. 27.

• Jason Jones, 21, of 10811 Milwaukee Ave., Louisville, Kentucky, pleaded not guilty to receiving stolen property, a fourth-degree felony. Judge Cooper set bond at $5,000 cash or surety. Pretrial was set for Oct. 4.

• Myca Followay, 32, of 150 Township Road 111, Ironton, pleaded guilty to two counts of trafficking in drugs (methamphetamine), felonies of the fourth-degree. Judge Cooper sentenced her to four years CCS under ISP with 17 months reserved, and ordered her to complete STAR. She was released on a $25,000 OR bond until her report date to the Lawrence County Jail three days before she begins STAR.

• Michael Castle, 38, of 2416 S. Fifth Street, Ironton, pleaded guilty to assault, a felony of the fourth-degree and resisting arrest, a second-degree misdemeanor. Judge Cooper sentenced him to one year in prison with credit for time served.

• Brandon Justice, 31, of 25 Private Drive 909, Ironton, pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony. Judge Cooper set sentencing for Oct. 4, and released Justice on a $25,000 OR bond and GPS monitoring until sentencing.