Eight enter guilty pleas to driving under the influence
Eight persons entered guitly pleas to driving under the influence (DUI) on Thursday in Carbon County court. The eight appeared before President Judge Roger N. Nanovic II, who accepted the pleas. Those entering pleas included:
Donald A. Reese, 38, of Jim Thorpe, was arrested on Oct. 11, 2009, along Broadway in Jim Thorpe. Given a test the result showed him four times over the legal limit of .08, having a .34BAC.
Nanovic placed him on probation for six months as a first time offender and ordered he pay a fine of $300 and get a drug and alcohol (D&A) evaluation and follow any recommendation for treatment.
Michael T. Nahaj, 42, of Nesquehoning, was arrested on Aug. 1, 2009, along SR209 in Nesquehoning. He refused a blood test and will lose his license for a year.
Nanovic sentenced him to serve 90 days to five years in jail as a second offender. He was also ordered to pay a fine of $1,500 and his license suspended for 18 months. He must also get a D&A evaluation and not have or use any alcohol during the sentence.
He will serve 30 days in the county jail and 60 days in the Intermediate Punishment Program (IPP) with electronic monitoring. He will begin the jail term on Jan. 15 at 6 p.m. and was granted work release privileges.
Gene A. Obrian, 53, of Lehighton, was arrested on Aug. 15, 2009, along Mauch Chunk St., in Mahoning Township, after being involved in an accident. He also pleaded to one count of accidents involving damage to an unattended vehicle and a summary motor vehicle violation. Given a test, the result was .28BAC.
Nanovic sentenced him to serve 30 days to six months in prison, pay a fine of $750, license suspended for a year, get both a D&A and mental health evaluation. On the accidents charge he was fined $300 and costs and on the summary $25 and costs.
He will begin the jail term on Jan. 15 at 7:30 a.m. and serve it on consecutive weekends.
Jeremy Gerhart, 39, of Jim Thorpe, was arrested on Sept. 26, 2009, along the Sgt. Stanley Hoffman Blvd., in Lehighton, during a sobriety checkpoint operation. Police said they found drugs and drug parapernalia in the vehicle. Given a test, the result showed .046 percent alcohol and also positive for marijuana.
Nanovic sentenced him to serve 72 hours to six months in jail, a fine of $1,000, one year license suspension, and pay $134 for the blood test. He begins the jail term on Jan. 11 at 10 a.m.
Andrew Anthony Kressler, 61, of Lehighton, was arrested on Oct. 3, 2009, in front of the Lehighton police station. Given a test, the result was .25BAC.
Nanovic sentenced him to serve five days to six months in jail, a fine of $750, one year license suspension and get a D&A evaluation. The prison term is consecutive to a probation violation jail term he is currently serving in the county jail.
Thomas John Moyer, 51, of Weissport, was arrested on Oct. 5, 2009, along Bankway, in Lehighton. Given a test, the result was .15BAC.
He was placed on probation for six months and ordered to pay a fine of $300 and get a D&A evaluation.
Galen Paul Vandine, 59, of Jim Thorpe, was arrested on Sept. 6, 2009, along N. First St., in Lehighton, while operating a motorcycle. The police report indicated a witness observed Vandine driving erratically and then falling over with the bike. She called police who arrived on scene and found Vandine lying on the ground. He got up and then fell over again. A test revaled a .30BAC.
Nanovic deferred sentencing to give Vandine a chance to apply for placement in the IPP.
James R. Taylor, 41, of Lehighton, was arrested on Sept. 26, 2009, along the Sgt. Stanley Hoffman Blvd., in Lehighton, during a sobriety checkpoint operation. Given a test, the result was .19BAC.
Nanovic sentenced him to serve 45 days to six months in jail, a fine of $300, one year license suspension and get a D&A evaluation.
He began the jail term immediately and was granted work release privileges.
All defendants were also ordered to pay court costs and a $50 per month supervision fee.