Wells Superior Court
Criminal Cases
Donelle N. Harris, 38, Fairfield, Ill., pleaded guilty to interference with custody, a Level 6 felony, and check deception, a Class A misdemeanor.
Sentenced to two years in prison for the felony and six days in the Wells County Jail on the misdemeanor. The sentences are to be served concurrently. All but six days of each sentence was suspended and credited as time served. Place on probation for 724 days.
Ordered to submit a DNA sample, pay Ossian BP restitution as well as court costs and probation fees. She was also ordered to strictly abide by all court orders concerning custody of the child she has in common with a former boyfriend.
Harris was charged with bouncing a check $27.04 at the Ossian BP station Aug. 27, 2020.
Harris also had a child in common with a Wells County man but there was no official court order in place regarding custody of the child when she moved away from Wells County to Illinois on Oct. 13, 2020. Eventually, after trying several options unsuccessfully, the ex-boyfriend sought visitation rights with the child, and on June 28, 2021, he was awarded sole physical and legal custody of the child with Harris being awarded parenting time.
However, when he went to pick the child up in Illinois, the ex-boyfriend discovered that Harris had a protective order issued against him. He fought that legally and won but still Harris reportedly continued to keep the man from seeing his child, resulting in the charge of interference with custody being filed against her.
———
Mallory G. Walker, 21, Fort Wayne, violated probation by being arrested in Allen County on one count of minor consuming alcohol, a Class C misdemeanor, and for failing to pay the financial obligations ($725) from her Wells County sentencing.
Ordered to pay $390 and her probation will terminate as unsuccessful.
Walker was originally sentenced May 28, 2021, on one count of operating a vehicle while intoxicated, a Class C misdemeanor.
———
Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Kevin D. Hovey, 54, Ossian, charged with possession of methamphetamine, a Level 6 felony; public intoxication, a Class B misdemeanor; and possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor. He was released on his own recognizance.
Sheriff’s deputies and Ossian police responded to the Ossian Deli at 404 N. Jefferson St. in Ossian at 10:09 p.m. Sept. 24 on a report that a middle-aged man had taken off his shirt and was swatting at the air. The man then started walking behind the building that houses the business.
A sheriff’s deputy spotted the man — who now had on a shirt — identified him as Hovey, and asked him about his actions. Hovey reportedly claimed that he had a bug inside his clothing and that the bug was “releasing pheromones.” Hovey reportedly claimed that was why he was also wearing a mask.
Suspecting that Hovey might be impaired, a second sheriff’s deputy asked if he had been drinking. Hovey denied that he had. The investigating deputy asked if he had taken any illegal substances. Hovey allegedly initially denied he had, but was hesitant in his answer. Allegedly he later admitted he had been using methamphetamine.
A search of Hovey’s person allegedly turned up a small plastic bag of a white crystalline substance that Hovey allegedly told the deputy, “I guess it’s meth.”
A small plastic straw was also reportedly found in his possession.
———
Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Jade M. Glover, 36, Bluffton, charged with possession of marijuana, a Class B misdemeanor, and possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor. Bond continued at $1,500. Jeffrey A. Stineburg appointed public defender.
On Sept. 16 Glover tipped police of the presence of a man in her house, Adam Laux, 44, rural Monroe, who was wanted out of Adams County and out of Montgomery County, Ohio, on various drug charges.
Laux would eventually end up being arrested on the warrants but also was charged with dealing in methamphetamine, a Level 3 felony; possession of a narcotic drug, a Level 6 felony, and possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor, after Bluffton police officers allegedly found drugs and drug paraphernalia in his possession.
Glover reportedly handed one of the officers a white zipper-top bag containing a green leafy substance with the odor and appearance of marijuana and told the officer she had purchased the material from Laux.
———
Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Bradley J. Richardson, 29, Bluffton, charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person, a Class A misdemeanor, and operating a vehicle with an alcohol concentration equivalency of at least .08 percent but less than .15 percent, a Class C misdemeanor.
At 2:08 a.m. Sept. 24, Bluffton police were dispatched to Hunter Road on a report of a truck driving through a field adjacent to the road. The first officer to arrive spotted a pickup truck parked on Hunter Road and Richardson seated behind the steering wheel, however Richardson denied having driven the pickup truck.
Richardson reportedly told the officer that he was “Just trying to make sure his (Richardson’s) wife was OK” and that he was trying to find her.
Since Richardson lives on the opposite side of town, the officer found the statement to be odd. A second officer had Richardson step out of the vehicle. That’s when officers reportedly noticed that Richardson smelled of alcohol. The second officer asked Richardson if he had driven the pickup truck through the adjacent field and he denied it, allegedly admitting that he had only driven the pickup truck as far as Hunter Road and then parked it there.
Further investigation allegedly showed that tracks in the soft earth in the field matched the tread on the tires of the pickup truck where Richardson had been sitting.
A Breathalyzer test reportedly showed his alcohol concentration equivalency to be .145 percent, or nearly twice Indiana’s legal limit for intoxication of .08 percent.
———
Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Zackery T. Felger, 26, rural Angola, charged with operating a vehicle with an alcohol concentration equivalency of .08 percent or more with a prior conviction for the same or a similar offense, a Level 6 felony; operating a vehicle while intoxicated with a prior conviction for the same offense, a Level 6 felony; possession of marijuana, a Class B misdemeanor; possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor; and open alcoholic beverage container during operation of a motor vehicle, a Class C infraction.
At 8:58 p.m. Sept. 24, Ossian police and sheriff’s deputies received a report of a southbound BMW heading into Ossian from the north side. Reportedly the BMW was weaving all over the road. The BMW pulled into the Ossian Deli, which is where law enforcement found it parked next to a gas pump island.
The driver, later identified as Felger, reportedly entered the car after pumping gas and the officers waited to see if he would leave. After a short time had passed, Felger reportedly drove from the gas pump island to the north side of the store.
Law enforcement approached the parked vehicle and the investigating officer asked Felger about his driving behavior. Felger reportedly told the officer he had a lawyer and knew his rights. A sheriff’s deputy allegedly spotted an open bottle of Modelo beer in plain sight in the cupholder of the car.
Felger was ordered out of the car, but allegedly refused to get out. Felger was then pulled from the vehicle and placed into handcuffs.
Felger reportedly smelled of alcohol, appeared intoxicated and on a certified breath test performed at the Wells County Jail blew a .106 percent alcohol concentration equivalency.
———
Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Markus L. Oliver, 40, Bluffton, charged with public intoxication and possession of marijuana, both Class B misdemeanors. He was released on his own recognizance.
At 3:38 a.m. Sept. 24, Bluffton police responded to the midway of the Bluffton Free Street Fair on a report of a man lying on the sidewalk. The man turned out to be Oliver.
Oliver allegedly admitted to officers that he had been drinking and was “high.” He blew a .151 percent alcohol concentration equivalency on a Breathalyzer test. During the course of placing Oliver in custody, officers reportedly found a small plastic bag containing a green leafy substance with the odor and appearance of marijuana at the bottom of a Swisher Sweets cigar box that had been in one of Oliver’s pockets.
———
Preliminary pleas of not guilty entered for Oscar Alejandro-Medina, 20, Fort Wayne, and Carlos Villagomez-Gayten Jr., 20, Fort Wayne, each charged with competing in a speed contest, a Class B misdemeanor, and reckless driving, a Class C misdemeanor. Larry Mock was appointed as public defender for Villagomez-Gayten Jr.
The two men are charged with drag racing their cars at high rates of speed on 450E south of 300N at 6 p.m. Sept. 24.
———
Paige L. Sills, 24, Decatur, pleaded guilty to driving while suspended with a prior conviction for the same offense, a Class A misdemeanor.
Sentenced to a year in the Wells County Jail, with all but eight days suspended — credited as time served, and placed on probation for 357 days.
Ordered to obtain valid driving privileges 30 days prior to the expiration of her probation. Her probation will terminate upon her receiving those privileges. Ordered to pay court costs and probation fees.
While patrolling Spring Street at Main Street May 15, a Bluffton police officer observed a vehicle without its headlights on. The officer flashed the headlights of his patrol vehicle twice to get the driver of the other vehicle to turn on the vehicle’s headlights.
The vehicle’s lights remained off.
The officer then followed it north on Main Street and pulled it over at Wiley Avenue. The driver was identified as Sills.
A driver’s license check on her showed that she had a previous driving while suspended conviction in Wells Superior Court May 9, 2016, and her license was suspended until Dec. 31, 2024.
She also had an active warrant for her arrest out of Shelby County for failure to appear in court.
———
Kim Elaine Harris, 62, rural Churubusco, violated probation by testing positive for buprenorphine fentanyl and THC May 31; testing positive for buprenorphine and THC June 17; testing positive for methamphetamine and buprenorphine June 21 and testing positive for THC June 28.
Ordered to serve 456 in prison and pay $135 in fees.
Upon completion of her sentence, her probation will terminate.
Harris was originally sentenced April 9, 2021, on one count of possession of a narcotic drug, a Level 6 felony.
———
Earl Deandre Harris, 43, Fort Wayne, pleaded guilty to refusal to identify himself, a Class C misdemeanor.
Sentenced to 60 days in the Wells County Jail, with all but 20 days suspended — credited as time served, and placed on probation for 345 days.
Ordered to pay court costs and probation fees.
As part of a plea agreement, charges of driving while suspended, a Class A infraction; operating a motor vehicle without insurance, a Class A infraction; and operating a motor vehicle with a false license plate wherein the license plate belongs on another vehicle, a Class C infraction, were all dismissed.
While patrolling northbound on I-69 Nov. 22, 2021, a sheriff’s deputy spotted a vehicle ahead of him that appeared to have a false sticker on its license plate. The sticker was on a blue GMC but belonged on a Pontiac passenger car.
The deputy pulled the vehicle over and spoke with the driver, who allegedly told the deputy that having a different sticker on a license plate was not a crime and declined to provide any further information, allegedly saying he did not have to.
The deputy placed Harris in handcuffs and again asked him if he had any identification on him. He said he did and the deputy removed it from his pocket. The deputy then discovered that Harris had a suspended driver’s license.
Marriage Licenses
Brice Lee Eversole, 40, Ossian, and Jessica Lynette Mullen, 39, Ossian.
Matthew Evan Lowe, 32, Kingsland, and Candace Rae Alexander, 28, Kingsland.
Brice Andrew Birch, 34, Bluffton, and Morgan Taylor Straw, 24, Bluffton.
Chandler Eric McCutcheon, 22, Fort Wayne, and Willow Kay Anderson, 21, Bluffton.
Colt James Ternet Sr.,m 39, Bluffton, and Michelle Lea Fetty, 51, Bluffton.
Devin Devonte McElveen, 29, Bluffton, and Rachel Diane Parsons, 28, Bluffton.
Brooke Alexander Gephart, 25, Bluffton, Brandon Matthew Betz, 28, Bluffton,.
Victoria Lynn Stinson, 19, rural Bluffton, and Greggory Michael Wayman, 18, rural Poneto.
