By Krystal Smalley
ksmalley@wbcowqel.com
Crawford County Common Pleas Court Judge Sean Leuthold minces no words when it comes to his feelings on the intervention in lieu of conviction program and one case Monday morning showed why he is so adverse to it.
Thirty-two-year-old Helenia Javens, of Delaware, was placed on a two-year intervention program in October after pleading guilty to theft of drugs. At the time, Leuthold noted that Javens was only the third person he put on intervention since taking the bench. Javens’ attorney Sebastian Berger advocated to have Javens put into intervention despite Leuthold rarely utilizing it.
“I’ve basically discontinued this entire program because I didn’t think it was a very effective program,” Leuthold said. “You’ve only convinced me more how ineffective this program was and is.”
Javens admitted to violating her intervention program after failing to report to her office visits since Jan. 14. Leuthold accepted Javens’ original guilty plea and sentenced her to five years on community control with the special conditions that she serve 100 days in the county jail and enter into a drug and alcohol treatment program.
Javens could face up to 18 months in prison if she fails on community control.
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Two more people were placed on community control after their pre-sentence investigations were completed. Thirty-eight-year-old Paul Wise III, of Oregon, Ohio, and 31-year-old Joseph Lewis, of Bucyrus, each received five-year community control sentences. Wise must also forfeit a Ruger firearm while Lewis was entered into the county’s probation program for high-risk offenders, fined $1,250, ordered to pay $35 in restitution to FC Bank, and must enter a drug and alcohol treatment program.
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Three other people were brought to court for initial hearings on community control violations.
Twenty-two-year-old Trisha Lewis, of Bucyrus, allegedly caused physical harm to another female on Feb. 17. Leuthold set bond at $75,000. A misdemeanor charge is also pending in Crawford County Municipal Court.
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Twenty-five-year-old John Kenny, of Bucyrus, allegedly caused physical harm to his live-in girlfriend on Feb. 20, and tested positive for marijuana on Feb. 22. Kenny, who pleaded guilty on two counts of aggravated assault in 2013, received a $100,000 bond.
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Twenty-five-year-old Harlie Witten was allegedly cited for drug abuse instruments, drug paraphernalia, and marijuana in Shelby on Feb. 3 and then had her urine test positive for marijuana and crack cocaine on Feb. 5.
Leuthold, who expressed worry for Witten when he saw her in court in September, set bond at $150,000.
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