Wells Superior Court
Criminal Cases
Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Lincoln Tamar Easley, 37, Fort Wayne, charged with driving while suspended with a prior conviction for the same offense, a Class A misdemeanor.
While monitoring traffic on Jefferson Street in Ossian Feb. 17, a sheriff’s deputy spotted a northbound 2012 Chevrolet Impala that appeared to be speeding. The deputy dropped in behind the car and performed a license plate check. He discovered the Impala was registered to Easley and that Easley had a suspended driver’s license. The deputy pulled the Impala over.
Easley has four convictions for driving while suspended in the past 10 years and his license is not eligible for renewal until Nov. 10, 2025.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Briah Diane Burnsworth, 28, Bluffton, charged with theft, wherein the value of the property alleged stolen exceeds $750 but is less than $50,000, a Level 6 felony.
Burnsworth is charged with making 45 bogus cash returns on products at her former employer, the Bluffton Dairy Queen restaurant, over a period of 68 days spanning the fall of 2022.
Burnsworth allegedly would ring up a return of a food product by a costumer and then pocket the amount of cash she had rung up on the store’s cash register. Reportedly none of the alleged returns were real. Allegedly Burnsworth pocketed $1,360.68 with the scheme.
She reportedly confessed to the crimes to her former supervisor and agreed to pay back the money owed, but she allegedly never made any payments.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for William Earl Higgins Turner, 22, Yoder, charged with operating a vehicle with a Schedule I or II controlled substance or its metabolite in his body with a prior conviction for the same offense, operating a vehicle while intoxicated with a prior conviction for the same offense, both Level 6 felonies; and leaving the scene of an accident involving bodily injury, a Class A misdemeanor. Corey Spreen appointed public defender.
A state trooper was one of numerous law enforcement officers who responded to a two-vehicle crash at the intersection of Ind. 1 and 300N Feb. 4.
He observed in his report to the court that Higgins Turner, the driver of one of the vehicles, took off running following the crash, but was apprehended by bystanders and law enforcement officers before he could get far.
The trooper observed that Higgins Turner had blood on his face.
Higgins Turner allegedly told the trooper that he ran because, “his mother would be disappointed in him for crashing the vehicle.”
However witnesses to the crash said Turner attempted to jump into the back of a passing pickup truck and urged them not to call the police, even though the accident was quite severe.
The trooper observed that Higgins Turner appeared to be extremely disoriented and at times behaved as if he did not realize he had been involved in a traffic crash.
Medics who had responded to the scene reportedly told the trooper that Higgins Turner admitted to having taken his mother’s Clonazapam, a prescription pain killer, prior to driving. He also allegedly admitted to having smoked marijuana and taken methamphetamine.
Wells Circuit Court
Criminal Cases
Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Nichole M. Colwell, 35, Bluffton, charged with domestic battery with a prior conviction for the same offense, a Level 5 felony. Bond set at $10,000. Larry Mock appointed public defender.
Colwell is charged with biting and slapping her boyfriend during an argument at the residence they shared in the 300 block of North Williams Street Jan. 6.
Civil Cases
Petition for change of name filed by Nikolas Nathaniel Stine, 17, Bluffton, seeking to change his name to Nikolas Nathaniel Bridges.
Complaint for payment of $11,975.44 filed by Prestige Financial Services, Edinburgh, against Preston Hamilton, Bluffton.
Complaint for payment of $1,149.47 filed by DNF Associates, South Bend, against Joshua Connett, Bluffton.
Complaint for payment of $5,294.49 filed by Jefferson Capital Systems LLC, Golden, Colo., against Ashley Zoda, Bluffton.
Complaint to enforce or modify a foreign support order filed by Amy L. Chalker, Manchester, Tenn., against David J. Vickers, Bluffton.
Complaint for payment filed by Portfolio Recovery Associates, Norfolk, Va., against: Kevin P. Jackson, rural Warren, $5,081.52; Robin L. Kinney, rural Ossian, $1,851.40; and Dylan Curran, rural Bluffton, $1,996.77.
Judgment of $95,257.12 entered for Erik Pratt, St. Paul, Minn., against Star Energy Holdings, rural Markle.
Petition for dissolution filed in the marriage of Scott Gillespie, Ossian, and Angel Gillespie, Metamora.
Oaths of office of elected officials formally filed in Wells Circuit Court.
Complaint for payment of $9,353.63 filed by Northwest Bank, Bloomington, against Nattasha N. Baumgartner, Bluffton.
Files Statement
A candidate’s statement of organization and designation of a principal or exploratory committee has been filed with the Wells County Clerk’s office by Sarah Jane Reed, Bluffton, seeking election to the Bluffton Common Council District 5.
The committee is called Sarah Red for City Council. Reed is serving as the committee’s chairman and treasurer.
The depository for the committee is Three Rivers Federal Credit Union.
