4 appear on light day in CP Court

Van Wert independent staff reports

Two people changed their pleas to guilty and two others appeared on probation violation charges in a light day Wednesday in Van Wert County Common Pleas Court.

Chad Rowe, 28, of Lima, admitted to violating his probation by failing to inform the probation department of a contact with a law enforcement officer, failing to report to probation and failing to complete counseling. His probation was revoked and he was ordered to serve a 12-month prison previously handed down, although he was also given credit for 198 days already served.

Jeremy Baer, 29, of Van Wert, also admitted to violating his probation by failing to information probation of a contact with a law enforcement officer, failing to report to probation and failing to pay court costs. He was resentenced to three years of community control, with an additional stipulation he serve 90 days in jail.

Also on Wednesday, Betsy Bollenbacher, 39, of Rockford, changed her plea from not guilty to guilty to a charge of grand theft, a fourth-degree felony offense. Judge Charles D. Steele ordered a presentence investigation and scheduled sentencing for 9 a.m. Wednesday, March 13.

Eva Leiendecker, 26, of Venedocia, changed her plea to guilty to three separate charges: two counts of assault on a peace officer, both fourth-degree felonies, and one count of vandalism, a felony of the fifth degree. Two charges of harassment by an inmate, each a fifth-degree felony, were dismissed in exchange for her guilty plea on the other three counts.

A presentence investigation was ordered and sentencing set for 9 a.m. March 13.