By Gary Ogle
gogle@wbcowqel.com
Kevin James spent his 24th birthday in the Crawford County jail and after Friday’s appearance in Common Pleas Court, it looks as though he’ll be spending the next several birthdays in prison.
James, a Detroit native and current Marion resident, was sentenced to concurrent nine-year prison sentences following his guilty pleas in front of Judge Sean Leuthold to two counts of first-degree felony drug possession. James was also fined $10,000 and had his driver’s license suspended for six months. He must also forfeit property to the Galion Police Department.
James’ sentence was part of a plea arrangement made with the Crawford County Prosecutor’s Office. The maximum penalties were 11-year prison sentences and a $25,000 fine on each count. James has no previous felony convictions.
James will also be subject to a mandatory five-years of post-release control and will also be ineligible to own or possess firearms.
James will receive 65 days of jail time credit on his sentence. He has been incarcerated at the county jail and held on $1 million bond since his arrest by Galion police and METRICH authorities on Dec. 18.
James was arrested along with another Marion resident, 27-year-old Danielle Davis, when authorities executed a search warrant at 539 S. Boston St. Charges against Davis were not filed.
Authorities seized more than 60 grams of heroin and over 50 grams of cocaine. In sentencing James, Leuthold noted the quantity of the drugs.
“The heroin and the cocaine, that was probably more dangerous than the firearms,” Leuthold said. “The bottom line it is my job to make sure the defendant is properly punished, and more importantly, it is my job to protect the public.”
Besides the drugs and drug paraphernalia seized by police, James must also forfeit ownership to several other items secured in the execution of the search warrant. Those items include a digital scale, two flat screen televisions, a DVD recorder, cell phones, a Playstation 3, knives, a camcorder, an Air Soft pistol, a 9mm High Point rifle, vapor pipe, scanner and $3,210 in United States currency.