BUCYRUS — The sentencing hearing of a former Sheriff’s Department corrections officer has been postponed.
Jason Tupps, 45, of Galion was found not guilty in a recent jury trial of holding a motorist at gunpoint in July 2018 and threatening to shoot her. The incident led to multiple charges against Tupps, including improper handling of a firearm, abduction, driving under the influence of alcohol, using weapons while intoxicated, aggravated menacing, and assured clear distance.
A jury of nine men and three women found Tupps guilty only of falsification, a first-degree misdemeanor punishable with up to a $1000 fine and 180 days in jail. Tupps was scheduled to be sentenced this Friday at 10 a.m. in the Crawford County Common Pleas Court.
Visiting Judge Robert Pollex of Wood County conferred with special prosecutor Margaret Tomaro of Cleveland and defense attorney James Mayer III of Mansfield to reschedule the sentencing.
To consolidate hearings on that day, Tupps will be sentenced on September 29 at 11 a.m. Another defendant related to the case, Brittany Miller, 29, of Galion is scheduled to have her final pretrial on the same date at 1 p.m.
Miller is charged with one count of complicity, a third-degree felony punishable with up to three years in prison and one count of theft, a fourth-degree felony punishable with up to 18 months in prison.
Miller allegedly conspired with Megan Futchi, 33, of Cleveland in connection with the Tupps case. Futchi and Miller allegedly hatched a plan to extort money from Tupps’ parents. Futchi was given $4000 to provide information against Galion police officers involved in the case.
Miller and Futchi met when Miller found out that Futchi was expecting a baby with her baby’s father, attorney Adam Stone. Futchi pleaded guilty to charges and received intervention in lieu of conviction with the condition that she pay back the money she got from Tupps’ parents and testified for the state at the trial.
Futchi testified at trial but was uncooperative and did not testify to information she provided to the state in a proffer (the offer of evidence in support of the prosecution’s case). She was declared a hostile witness and could be in jeopardy of losing the plea deal and sentenced to up to six years in prison. The state has not indicated if they intend to pursue charges against Futchi.
In a last-minute decision, Miller turned down the same offer and decided to go to trial. She is represented by attorney Joel Spitzer.