Van Wert woman sentenced to prison

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

A Van Wert woman who admitted to assaulting a city police officer this past spring learned her fate on Wednesday.

During a hearing in Van Wert County Common Pleas Court, Latricia Darst, 34, was sentenced to one year in prison for assault, a fourth degree felony, and six months for OVI, a first degree misdemeanor. Judge Martin Burchfield ordered the sentences to run concurrently and he ordered her to pay fines and court costs.

Darst was arrested in April after punching the officer outside of her N. Cherry St. residence. Prior to that, she went to the police station to report a domestic incident, but she refused to talk to the first officer who tried to help her. As she sat and waited on the supervisor to come out, she became upset and left screaming at the officers as she exited the police station. She was warned for disorderly conduct for her behavior. After that, the police department responded to calls about a disturbance at her home. A police report said Darst drove up and continued to scream and curse at the officers.

After initially pleading not guilty, Darst changed her plea to guilty during a hearing in May.

One other sentencing hearing was held in Van Wert County Common Pleas Court on Wednesday.

Justin Pegg, 26, of Van Wert, was sentenced to two years of community control, 30 days in jail at a later date, and 100 hours of community service for domestic violence, a fourth degree felony. He was ordered to have no alcohol or drugs without a prescription, undergo random screens, mental health and substance abuse assessment and treatment, possess no firearms and have no contact with victim, and was ordered to pay partial appointed counsel fees, monthly probation fees and court costs.

Seven people were present for arraignment hearings on Wednesday.

Travis Faulkner, 48, of Van Wert, entered a not guilty plea to domestic violence, a fourth degree felony. He was released on a surety bond and a pre-trial hearing was set for 9 a.m. August 9.

Eugene Munson, Jr., 40, of Van Wert, pleaded not guilty to tampering with evidence, a second degree felony, and aggravated possession of drugs, a fifth degree felony. He was released on a surety bond and a pre-trial hearing was scheduled for 8 a.m. August 2.

Zachary Herman, 21, of Van Wert, entered a not guilty plea to failure to provide notice of change of address, a fourth degree felony. He was released on a surety bond and a pre-trial hearing was scheduled for set for 9 a.m. August 9.

Daniel Dircksen, 37, of Delphos, pleaded not guilty to theft from a person in a protected class, a second degree felony. He was released on a surety bond with a no contact order. A pre-trial hearing was set for 8:30 a.m. August 2.

Jonathan Fugatt, 50, of Lima, pleaded not guilty to theft, a felony of the fifth degree. He was released on a surety bond and a pre-trial hearing was scheduled for 9 a.m. August 9.

Gary Hough, 51, of Van Wert, entered a not guilty plea to aggravated possession of drugs, a third degree felony and having weapons while under disability, a third degree felony. He was released on a surety bond and a pre-trial hearing was scheduled for 8 a.m. August 2.

Connor Manson, 20, of Toledo, pleaded not guilty to failure to provide notice of change of address, a third degree felony. He was released on a surety bond and a pre-trial hearing was scheduled for 8 a.m. August 2.

Several other hearings were held over the past week.

Wayne Kimmel, 38, of Pleasant Lake, Indiana, admitted to violating his bond by failing a drug test. A pre-sentence investigation was ordered and sentencing was set for 9 a.m. August 23.

Jaime Boyd, 47, of Van Wert, admitted violating her probation by failing drug screens. She was sentenced to an additional two years of community control and ordered to inpatient treatment.

Ryan Jacomet, 24, of Delphos, changed his plea to guilty of improperly handling of firearms in a motor vehicle aggravated possession of drugs, both fifth degree felony. He requested and was granted intervention in lieu of conviction and his case was stayed pending completion of the treatment program.

Frank Ross, Jr., 54, of Van Wert, changed his plea to guilty of violating a protection order, a fifth degree felony. He was sentenced to one year of community control, 30 days jail at a later date and 50 hours of community service. In addition, he is to have no alcohol or drugs without a prescription, undergo random screens, mental health and substance abuse assessment and treatment, and ordered to pay partial appointed counsel fees, monthly probation fees and court costs.

James W. Vibbert, 60, of Van Wert admitted to violating his bond by failing to report to the probation department. New bond was set at $10,000 cash or commercial surety and a pre-trial hearing was scheduled for 8:15 a.m. August 2.

After a one day jury trial, Christopher Tinsley, Jr., 27, of Van Wert was found guilty of assault, a fourth degree felony. He was acquitted of aggravated arson, a first degree felony, and escape, a second degree felony.

He was accused of setting fire to decorative bale of straw at the Comfort Inn on N. Washington St. in late November. A shed at the hotel was also set ablaze. Tinsley fought with Van Wert Police and Van Wert County deputies while they attempted to take him into custody. He’ll be sentenced at 9:30 a.m. August 23.