Kitts Hill man gets 8 years on burglary charges

Published 11:59 am Thursday, July 13, 2017

Four counts include theft of a credit card, theft of a handgun and two charges of burglary

Judge Charles Cooper sentenced Michael Keeney, 26, of Kitts Hill, to a total of eight years in prison on Wednesday morning, on two charges of burglary and charges of theft and theft of a firearm, after Keeney entered a guilty plea to the charges. Keeney was sentenced to three years each on the theft charges, and eight years each on the two charges of burglary, with those sentences to run concurrently.

Keeney burglarized or stole the items from four separate residences in Lawrence County.

Cooper also sentenced Billy C. Edwards, 35, of Milton, West Virginia, to six years in prison on charges of trafficking in heroin, with a gun specification. Edwards pleaded guilty to the charges on June 14, as part of a plea deal that nullified seven other counts including charges of possession of drugs, trafficking in oxycodone and methamphetamine, and tampering with evidence. Edwards was given five years on the charge of trafficking in heroin, with an additional year for the gun specification, for a total of six years.

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Jason A Rice, 34, of Catlettsburg, Kentucky, was sentenced to 18 moths in prison on charges of trafficking in and possession of methamphetamine, after pleading guilty to the charges back on March 29.

Phillip J. O’Dell Jr., age and address unknown, was also sentenced to eight months in prison after pleading guilty to charges against him. A file on O’Dell was not available at press time.

In other action in Cooper’s courtroom, James E. Chapman, 50, of Huntington, pleaded not guilty to charges of possession of hydrocodone and released on $50,000 own recognizances bond. Clayton A. Pate, 33, of Ironton, exercised his right not to proceed on a bill of inquiry, and was bound over to a grand jury on charges of burglary, violating a protective order, criminal trespass, and possession of an instrument of drug abuse. Timothy E. Powell, 46, of South Point, denied violating the terms of his CCS and had his trial set for two weeks.

Richard L. Sharp, 54, of Ironton, pleaded not guilty to charges of trafficking in methamphetamine and possession of methamphetamine, and had bond set at $10,000 cash or surety. The attorney for Richard S. Thompson, 35, of Chesapeake, introduced a motion to suppress. Thompson is charged with trafficking in heroin, possession of heroin, trafficking in methamphetamine, and possession of methamphetamine. These charges include specifications for guns and cash, totaling in excess of $53,000.

In Judge Andrew Ballard’s courtroom, Joseph Wilson, 30, of Ironton, pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine and possession of an instrument of drug abuse, and was sentenced to 11 months in prison on count one and 90 days in jail on county two, to run consecutively, for a total of 11 months.

Christopher Sowards, 30, of Huntington, pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine, a felony of the fifth degree, and falsification, a misdemeanor of the first degree, and was sentenced to four years of CCS with ISP, 200 hours of community service, and to complete a program at STAR Community Justice Center on count one and to six months, suspended, on count two.

Jason D. Smith, 38, of Huntington, West Virginia, pleaded guilty to possession of heroin and DUI, and was sentenced to four years of CCS with ISP, 200 hours of community service, and to complete an inpatient program at Riverside treatment center, as well as a $500 fine and six month license suspension on the DUI charge, and 14 days in jail, with credit for time served.

Jennifer Kelly, 35, of Ashland, Kentucky, pleaded guilty to charges of tampering with evidence, endangering children, and possession of drugs, and was sentenced to four years of CCS and 200 hours of community service on count one, and six months, suspended, on counts two and three.

Jamie Blevins, 33, of Ironton, admitted to his CCS violations and was sentenced to six months in prison.

Chadwick Goodrich, 40, of Ironton, Vickie Newcomb, age and address unknown, and David Rann, age and address unknown, denied their CCS violations and had their trials set for future dates.

Chaz Estep, 26, of South Point, had his trial date set for August 10 or charges of domestic violence, a felony of the fourth degree.

Reginald Kinstler, 38, of Ironton, rejected his final offer on charges of possession of methamphetamine, misdemeanor theft, and resisting arrest, and had his trial set for August 17.

Danny J. Martin, 61, of South Point, rejected his final offer and had his trial set for September 18.

Jonathon Mason, 25, of Detroit, had his trial set for August 21, on charges of improper handling of a firearm in a vehicle.

William Thomas, 40, of Ironton, rejected his final offer on charges of F5 possession of drugs and had his trial set for September 11-12.

Ryan Stephens, age and address unknown, pleaded not guilty to charges of F5 theft, and had his pretrial set for July 26.

Paul Zimmerman had new counsel appointed, due to an apparent conflict of interest with the firm representing him.

Donald Pace, 32, of Chesapeake, appeared before Ballard for resentencing. Pace was previously sentenced to six years on charges of F2 burglary. However, when Pace was originally sentenced last week, that sentence did not include an order to pay restitution to the victim of his crimes.

This week Pace was resentenced to six years in prison, and ordered to pay $5,904 in restitution to the victim of his crime.