By Alan Sorensen
Nearly 20 people pleaded guilty or were sentenced for crimes in 12th Judicial District Court between early May and mid June.
Adam M. Allen, 19, Boulder, on May 12 was given a sentence deferral until Dec. 31, 1999, and fined $300 after pleading guilty May 6 to burglary and theft charges. He was ordered to pay $45 in surcharges and $50 restitution. The charges stemmed from the break-in of a Beaver Creek Park cabin on April 7, 1999.
William Joseph Lawrence, 25, Havre, admitted committing forgery in Cascade County in violation of his suspended sentence. He was sentenced to five years custody with the Department of Corrections. Lawrences original sentence was imposed after he pleaded guilty in 1996 to selling dangerous drugs in the 1300 block alley of First Street on Nov. 3, 1995.
Norman Charles Chase, 48, Fort Belknap, was given a 2-year deferred imposition of sentence and fined $200 on a charge of selling dangerous drugs that he pleaded guilty to on April 5. The charge stemmed from an incident in which Converse sold drugs to an undercover informant on Feb. 19, 1998, in the 500 block of Second Street.
William Kenneth Lohman, 17, Havre, pleaded guilty to two counts of burglary, one a Havre business on Feb. 4 and the other a Fort Benton golf course on Feb. 28, 1999. Lohman faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up $50,000 on each charge.
Lohmans sentencing was scheduled for 9 a.m. July 12.
Ryan Kelly Schafer, 21, Havre, pleaded guilty to criminal mischief that resulted from driving a stolen car into the old Lutheran Home of the Good Shepherd on Dec. 12, 1999. The maximum sentence is 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000. His sentencing was scheduled for 11 a.m. July 12.
Rick LaMond Nieskens, 33, Deer Lodge, was given a 2-year suspended sentence to Montana State Prison and ordered to pay $560 restitution. Nieskens pleaded guilty April 19 to a charge of theft by fraud. The original complaint said that Nieskens passed himself off as an officer of a local service club to charge more than $600 worth of groceries at two Havre stores between Sept. 28 and Oct. 31, 1998.
Winston Roy Hardy, aka Roy Roberts, 40, Anaconda, was sentenced to six years in Montana State Prison with credit for 187 days already served. Roberts had pleaded guilty April 19 to a charge of burglary that arose from an incident in which Hardy entered a secured area in a Havre hotel on Nov. 29, 1998, and stole about $200 from a cash register. He also was ordered to pay $200 restitution.
Joseph Young Lodgepole, 19, Box Elder, was given a 3-year deferred imposition of sentence on condition that he enroll in and complete Job Corps. The sentence was for a robbery charge stemming from Lodgepoles snatching of a womans purse in the 600 block of Second Street on March 19. He pleaded guilty on April 16.
Donald Robert Wood, 34, Havre, pleaded guilty to burglary and theft for an incident at a business in the 400 block of Second Street on Dec. 19, 1998. The burglary charge carries a fine of up $50,000 and a prison sentence of up to 20 years. The theft charge carries the same fine and a sentence not to exceed 10 years. Sentencing was set for 9 a.m. July 12.
Trevor Jay Standinghorn, 19, Box Elder, pleaded guilty to partner assault and assaulting a peace officer. The incidents occurred on Feb. 27 in the 300 block of Sixth Street. The officer assault caries a maximum sentence of between 2 and 10 years and the other assault carries a sentence of not more than 10 years. Both have maximum fines of $50,000. Sentencing was scheduled for 9 a.m. July 12.
Curtis Stanley, 34, Box Elder, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault for assaulting another man with a metal pipe in the 600 block of Fifth Avenue on Jan. 30. Stanley was sentenced to six months in jail with all but nine days already served suspended on condition that he remain law-abiding, complete chemical dependency treatment, and remain sober.
Ricky Valdez, 22, Havre, pleaded guilty to third offense family member assault for an incident in the 600 block of Fifth Avenue on Feb. 28. The sentence for the offense ranges from 30 days to five years in prison and the prescribed fine is between $500 and $50,000. Valdez is scheduled to be sentenced at 10 a.m. July 19.
William Sandy Nace, aka William Alan Nace, 35, Havre, pleaded guilty to two counts of exploitation of an elderly person. One victim was a Havre woman in August 1998 and the other was a Chouteau County man in September and October 1998. Nace was ordered to pay $250 county attorney fees on both counts and given two 1-year deferred impositions of sentence. He was ordered to pay 8,500 restitution and to abide by numerous conditions of release.
Melvin Jacob Lightfoot, 22, Havre, was sentenced to 12 months in Montana State Prison and an additional four years on probation on a fourth offense DUI incident stemming from drunken driving in a First Street parking lot on March 28. He must pay a $1,000 fine or perform 100 hours of community service and pay $25 in surcharges for the felony offense.
Kendall Stuart Quinnell, 22, Havre, pleaded guilty to criminal mischief for causing more than $500 in damages by shooting personal and public property in the Badlands area on March 6. The maximum sentence is 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000. Quinnells sentencing was set for 11 a.m. July 19.
Christopher Michael Brown, 20, Havre, was sentenced to three years custody with the Department of Corrections for violating conditions of an earlier deferred sentence by selling dangerous drugs. The earlier sentence was for burglarizing a Bear Paw home in 1997. Brown was given a 2-year suspended sentence on the drug charge. A charge of criminal mischief to personal and public property in the Badlands was dismissed on condition that Brown pay $459.80 restitution plus 10 percent.
Christopher Edwin Roman, 19, Havre, pleaded guilty to criminal mischief for causing more than $500 in damages by shooting personal and public property in the Badlands area on March 6. The maximum sentence is 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $50,000. His sentencing is scheduled for 11 a.m. July 19.
