Man pleads not guilty by reason of insanity

A Chesapeake man accused of raping a child answered charges on Wednesday in Lawrence County Common Pleas Court, pleading not guilty by reason of insanity.

Charles A. Ferris, 30, of 418 Second Ave., was arraigned on 54 first-degree counts of rape. The dates included in the indictment range from October 2008, when the alleged victim, was 2 years old, to June of this year, listing the alleged victim as 9 years old.

Judge Charles Cooper set bond at $1 million and ordered the man undergo a mental competency evaluation. A pretrial date will be set once the results of that exam are complete.

Each charge in the indictment carries two specifications, the first being that the jurors found that Ferris “committed the offense with a sexual motivation.” In the second, jurors found Ferris to be a “sexually violent predator.”

The maximum penalty is life in prison.

Related to the case, Kathryn M. Ferris, 63, of the same address, was arraigned on 30 counts of first-degree complicity to rape. Dates in the indictment range from November 2012 to June 2016.

She pleaded not guilty and Cooper set bond at $500,000. A pretrial was set for June 27.

In other cases:

• Charles Burns, 36, of 1515 S. Third St. Room 10, Ironton, was sentenced to three years in prison and a six-month driver’s license suspension. He previously pleaded guilty to fourth-degree counts of trafficking in drugs and trafficking in meth.

• Rodney White II, 37, of Proctorville, was arraigned on a second-degree count of robbery, to which he pleaded not guilty. Cooper set bond at $250,000 cash or surety and set a pretrial for July 20.

• Rebecca Miller, 23, of 705 Ashtabula St., Ironton, was arraigned on a second-degree count of burglary, to which she pleaded not guilty. Cooper set bond at $50,000 cash or surety and a pretrial was set for July 20.

• Garland Sharp, 26, listed as homeless, was sentenced to six months in prison. He previously pleaded guilty to fifth-degree possession of drugs and misdemeanor possession of drug abuse instruments and resisting arrest.

• Julius Sudderth, 60, listed as homeless, was arraigned on a second-degree count of burglary, to which he pleaded not guilty. Cooper set bond at $50,000 cash or surety and set a pretrial for July 20.

• Ricky Fraley, 46, of 3086 State Route 160, Gallipolis, was arraigned on a second-degree count of burglary, to which he pleaded not guilty. Cooper set bond at $50,000 cash or surety and set a pretrial for July 20.

• Jerry Massie, 33, of 1614 County Road 21, Ironton, admitted community control sanctions violations and was sentenced to nine months in prison.

• Jason Pinkerman, 30, of 163 Township Road 615, South Point, was arraigned on a fifth-degree count of possession of heroin, to which he pleaded not guilty. Judge D. Scott Bowling set bond at $10,000 own-recognizance plus GPS monitoring and set a pretrial for July 27.

• Scott Erickson, 41, of 243 Lafayette Lane, Franklin Furnace, was arraigned on counts of third-degree failure to comply with the order or signal of a police office and misdemeanor resisting arrest, to which he pleaded not guilty. Bowling set bond at $2,500 cash or surety and $5,000 OR with GPS monitoring. A pretrial was set for July 20.

• Ethan Anderson, 19, of 2033 State Route 243, Ironton, was arraigned on a third-degree count of tampering with evidence, to which he pleaded not guilty. Bowling set bond at $25,000 cash or surety and $25,000 OR. A pretrial was set for July 27.

• Brian Webb, 37, of 95 Private Drive 1005 Township Road 204, Willow Wood, was arraigned on a bill of information of fifth-degree breaking and entering, fifth-degree theft and misdemeanor criminal damaging, to which he pleaded not guilty. Bowling set bond at $20,000 cash or surety and $20,000 OR. A pretrial was set for July 20.

• Bradley Thacker, 20, of 71 Private Drive 4765, Chesapeake, admitted CCS violations and was sentenced to six months in prison.

• Nicholas Christian, 28, of 72 Private Drive 4037, Ironton, was arraigned on counts of third-degree of having weapons under a disability, fourth-degree receiving stolen property and misdemeanor resisting arrest and possession of drugs, to which he pleaded not guilty. Bowling set bond at $25,000 cash or surety plus OR. A pretrial was set for July 20.

• Melissa LeGrand, 39, of 54 Private Drive 1006, Scottown, was arraigned on counts of fifth-degree complicity to breaking and entering and misdemeanor possession of drug abuse instruments and resisting arrest. Bowling set bond at $10,000 OR plus GPS and set a pretrial for July 20.