4 people appear in Common Pleas Court

Van Wert independent

Four people appeared in Van Wert County Common Pleas Court on Wednesday before Judge Kevin Taylor, with two people sentenced and the other two changing their pleas.

Bronson Pate, 33, of Van Wert, was given three years of community control, including up to six months at the Western Ohio Regional Treatment and Habilitation (WORTH) Center in Lima, on a charge of aggravated trafficking in drugs, a felony of the fourth degree. Pate’s driver’s license was also suspended for six months.

Dion Kantner, 41, of Lima, was also given three years of community control on two counts of possession of cocaine, both fifth-degree felony offenses. He was also given a six-month driver’s license suspension.

Those changing their pleas include the following:
Robin Higginbotham, 51, of Van Wert, changed his plea to guilty to an amended charge of attempted aggravated possession of drugs, a misdemeanor of the first degree (reduced from a fifth-degree felony charge). A presentence investigation was ordered by Judge Taylor and a sentencing hearing scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday, April 22.

Lee Hummer, 27, of Delphos, changed his plea to a charge of attempted tampering with evidence, a fourth-degree felony (reduced from tampering with evidence, a felony of the third degree). Hummer then requested, and was granted, treatment in lieu of conviction, and his case was stayed pending successful completion of a substance abuse treatment program.