WILMINGTON — A pattern of testing positive for drug use — plus a pattern of trying to alter the test results — has landed a Wilmington man in state prison.
Jamie W. Cox, 43, was initially placed on community controls for three years in early 2016 after he was found guilty of possessing chemicals to make meth.
A few months later at a May 2016 Probation Department appointment, he told staffers he had recently smoked marijuana, but at the same appointment he did not provide a urine sample for drug testing.
In December 2016, Cox tested positive for using meth and amphetamine, and furthermore allegedly tried to dilute the specimen tested, say court papers.
In February 2017, a lab test confirmed that in late January 2017 Cox tested positive for meth and amphetamines, as well as confirming the presence of an adulterant in an attempt to beat the drug screen.
After testing positive for amphetamines in early July 2017, Cox admitted to having used meth a few days earlier. He also said he found the meth hidden in a pair of socks.
On July 13, 2017 Cox drove with a suspended operator’s license to the common pleas court’s supervision department. He reportedly told supervision staff he had taken care of his license suspension the day before, and that it must not have gotten updated in the computer system.
He additionally said he had documentation to show he was now allowed to drive, but then he did not return to the Supervision Department later that day with the paperwork as he had agreed to, according to court papers.
Then earlier this month, Cox did not report for a required Aug. 7 drug test. An Aug. 8 urine sample was confirmed by lab results to be an invalid sample with a suspicion of being diluted, states a court paper.
Although noting the defendant has limited criminal convictions, Clinton County Common Pleas Judge John W. “Tim” Rudduck revoked community controls and replaced them with a one-year prison term for the original charge of having chemicals to manufacture meth. Time credit was granted for 193 days Cox already spent in custody on the case.
In an unrelated case, Mark Nathaniel Potts, 23, of Clarksville, was sentenced to 14 months imprisonment for unlawful sexual conduct with a minor (a fourth-degree felony offense). The victim was 15 years old at the time of Potts’ conduct.
In pronouncing sentence, Rudduck stated a prison term is fitting in light of the age difference, and he also noted the defendant previously served a prison term for a failing to comply felony.
According to an Ohio Risk Assessment Report, Potts has a high risk of continuing to break the law.
He received time credit for 87 days already spent in custody on the case.
As a result of the conviction, Potts is classified a Tier 2 sex offender. That means he must verify his residency in person every 180 days for a period of 25 years.
Further, the Ohio Adult Parole Authority will supervise him for five years after his release from prison.
In another recent sentencing, Stacy Jill Garrett, 36, of Blanchester, was put on community control sanctions for a year after her conviction for drug possession. She received a suspended six-month jail term, forfeited the drugs, and was ordered to pay a $250 fine.
The drug possession offense is a fifth-degree felony.
Reach Gary Huffenberger at 937-556-5768.
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