Lake County District Court roundup
October 16
- Jonathan Wayne Snyder pleaded guilty to one count of felony criminal endangerment related to an incident last February. The plea agreement included reduction of the original charge of felony sexual intercourse without consent. Sentencing is scheduled for December 4, 2019. Maximum penalties include up to 10 years in prison and up to a $50,000 fine.
An omnibus hearing was continued for Kamille Murray Samuels, charged with incest, a felony. He had been released on his own recognizance with a GPS monitor bracelet but had failed to keep the battery charged and meet other requirements of his release, leading to an arrest warrant being issued October 15. Officers were unable to locate the defendant as of the hearing.
- Benny Vann Finley, Jr., was sentenced to five years prison, with credit for 117 days served, for felony possession of dangerous drugs, with a concurrent one-year suspended sentence on a misdemeanor charge of fleeing a police officer. Finley, Jr., is scheduled for a November 18, 2019 trial on a charge of aggravated assault for allegedly attacking a jail inmate.
- Seth Houston Dean Williams was arraigned on the charge of felony theft, alleged to have stolen two vehicles in September 2019. Williams also currently faces one previous charge from June 2019 of possession of methamphetamine, a felony.
- Michael Ross Trombley was sentenced to Department of Corrections for a period of two years, with two years suspended, and a $5,000 fine on a 4th or subsequent DUI. As the incident occurred prior to Trombley starting Drug Court, a strictly supervised program he is currently working through due to a previous conviction, he was ordered to continue with that program as part of the suspended sentence. District Judge James Manley discussed with the defendant his previous record in Department of Corrections addiction treatment programs. Trombley expressed optimism that Drug Court was already having a significant positive effect compared with incarceration, due to supervision and assistance in real life situations.
- Richard Thomas Nichols failed to appear for arraignment, charged with a felony for failure to register as a sexual or violent offender. An arrest warrant was issued the week before, but the defendant had not been located as of hearing time.
October 17
- Tracy Matthew Vanness, who pleaded guilty in July to felony theft charges stemming from embezzlement activity during his employment at Carquest Auto Parts in Ronan, was sentenced to six years deferred sentence and required to provide a total of $84,860.21 restitution to the theft victims plus court costs and fees. The amount includes payments to the previous owners as well as the new owner. District Judge Deborah Kim Christopher said that while she was reluctant to defer the sentence, the primary purpose was to give Vanness the opportunity to repay the victims.
“This is an extensive amount of restitution,” Judge Christopher said, emphasizing the importance of Vanness staying employed so that he could earn money for the repayment. “You could go to prison for ten years, but there they pay in cents, not dollars. The most important thing is for the victims to be made whole.”
- Drew Scott Payne pleaded guilty to burglary, a felony, after an incident July 30 in which the defendant was found with stolen items after breaking a window to enter an apartment without permission. Sentencing is scheduled for December 5.
- Donald George Albert entered a not-guilty plea for vehicular homicide while under the influence. Albert was charged in 2017 due to an accident near the Pablo Reservoir dam in which his son, Bryan Gaskins, was killed. Albert was brought in after two years on an outstanding arrest warrant. An omnibus hearing was scheduled for February 13, 2020, with a March 23 trial date.