2 sentenced, 1 given jail term in CP Court

Van Wert independent

Two people were sentenced, one appeared for a probation violation hearing and a fourth changed her plea from not guilty to guilty during hearings held Monday in Van Wert County Common Pleas Court.

Kelli Pontius, 27, of Van Wert, was sentenced to three years of community control on a charge of illegal assembly or possession of chemicals for manufacturing drugs, a felony of the third degree. As part of her sentence, Pontius must spend 30 days on electronically monitored house arrest (or jail, if she doesn’t qualify), and her driver’s license was suspended for six months.

Robert Keipper, 27, of Van Wert, was also given three years of community control on a charge of breaking and entering, a fifth-degree felony offense.

He must also spend up to six months at the Western Ohio Regional Treatment and Habilitation (WORTH) Center in Lima.

Jeremy Paige, 30, of Van Wert, was sentenced to 90 days in jail by Judge Charles D. Steele after he was found to have violated his probation and electronically monitored house arrest by being charged with domestic violence in Van Wert Municipal Court and refusing to take a drug test. Paige was given 44 days credit for time already served.

Also Monday, Tausha Walsh, 41, of Van Wert, changed her plea to guilty to one count each of possession of methamphetamine and possession of heroin, each a felony of the fifth degree. She then requested, and was granted, treatment in lieu of conviction and her case was stayed for up to one year so she can complete a substance abuse treatment program.