Courts arraign for drug trafficking, other crimes

Published 10:15 am Thursday, May 30, 2013

Several Lawrence County residents were arraigned on drug trafficking charges Wednesday in common pleas court, a result of recent indictments by a grand jury.

Amee Pyles, 28, of 98 Township Road 1025, South Point, was arraigned on five fourth-degree and one third-degree counts of trafficking in drugs (heroin and oxycodone). Pyles pleaded not guilty through attorney J.T. Holt.

Retired Judge W. Richard Walton, sitting by appointment for Judge D. Scott Bowling, continued a $7,500 cash or surety bond set at a lower court and added a $10,000 own-recognizance bond. Walton also set a pretrial for June 12.

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Joseph Whaley, 22, of 1111 S. Ninth St., Ironton was arraigned on three fourth-degree counts of trafficking in drugs (heroin). The man pleaded not guilty through attorney David Reid Dillon.

Walton set bond at $10,000 cash or surety and $40,000 OR. A pretrial was set for June 12.

Mary Mills, 44, of 413 Etna St., Ironton, was arraigned on a third-degree count of trafficking in drugs (oxycodone). Mills pleaded not guilty through attorney J.T. Holt.

Judge Charles Cooper set bond at $25,000 OR and set a pretrial for June 26.

Joseph Jenkins, 38, of 615 County Road 3, Chesapeake, was arraigned on three fourth-degree counts of trafficking in drugs, to which he pleaded not guilty.

Cooper set bond at $50,000 cash or surety and scheduled a pretrial for June 7.

In other cases:

• Andrew Smith, 23, of 177 Township Road 348 Ironton, was arraigned on a second-degree count of burglary. Smith pleaded not guilty through attorney Philip Heald.

Cooper set bond $40,000 cash or surety or $75,000 property. A pretrial was scheduled for June 12.

• Marcus Murphy, 25, of 618 S. Eighth St., Ironton, was arraigned on counts of first-degree aggravated burglary, fourth-degree menacing by stalking and three counts of misdemeanor assault. According to the indictment, two of the assault charges were allegedly against juveniles. Murphy pleaded not guilty to the charges through attorney Gene Meadows.

Cooper continued a $100,000 bond set in a lower court and set a pretrial for June 12.

• Jeremy Runyon, 35, of 1304 County Road 15, South Point, tested positive for cocaine at his pretrial drug screening. Cooper doubled the man’s bond to $100,000 cash or surety.

• Johnnie Richendollar, 25, of 629 S. Eighth St., Ironton, admitted community control sanctions violations and was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

• Jerry McDonald, 42, of 19 Township Road 1391, Chesapeake, was arraigned on a bill of information of third-degree failure to comply with the order or signal of a police officer. The man pleaded guilty through attorney Mike Davenport.

Cooper sentenced the man to three years in prison. Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Mike Gleichauf asked for the sentence to run concurrently with other related charges in a lower court.

• Timothy Vanblarcume, 23, of 185 Orchard Hollow, Ironton, was arraigned on a bill of information of fifth-degree possession of drugs (oxycodone). The man pleaded not guilty through attorney Gene Meadows.

Walton continued a $7,500 bond sent in a lower court and added a $10,000 OR bond. A pretrial was set for June 12.

• Jerod Summey, 33, of 1774 State Route 503, Wurtland, Ky., pleaded guilty to an amended charge of fourth-degree attempted illegal assembly or possession of chemicals for the manufacture of drugs. Walton sentenced the man to 12 months in prison, a $2,500 fine and a one-year driver’s license suspension.

• Joshua Coakley, 25, of 790 County Road 15, South Point, admitted CCS violations and was sentenced to four months in prison.

• Donald Malone, 56, of 93 County Road 357, Ironton, was arraigned on a fourth-degree count of receiving stolen property and third-degree failure to comply with the order of signal of a police officer.

Walton set bond at $25,000 cash or surety and set a pretrial for June 12.

• Jimmy Sparks, 25, of 20601 State Route 93, South Webster, admitted CCS violations and was sentenced to 125 days in prison.