Kunkletown woman pleads guilty in three pending cases
A Kunkletown woman entered guilty pleas on Thursday in Carbon County court in three pending criminal cases and is applying for placement in a special state prison program.
Jennifer Gongora, 32, pleaded to one count each of contraband into a prison, possession of a controlled substance — heroin, driving under the influence of a controlled substance, and driving under suspension — DUI related.
President Judge Roger N. Nanovic deferred sentencing so Gongora can be evaluated for placement in the state’s Intermediate Punishment program.
Gongora will report to the county prison at 5 p.m. on April 28. She will then be transferred to a state correctional institution for evaluation for the program. Nanovic said the program runs for two years and includes time in prison, then in a very strict drug rehabilitation program in the prison and later release to a halfway house setting.
Gongora was arrested for the contraband charge on Nov. 25, 2017, when she reported to the county prison for a weekend sentence for DUI. During a routine search she was found with needles loaded with heroin. The DUI occurred on Oct. 24, 2017, along Spruce Hollow Road in Lower Towamensing Township. The suspension count was filed in that matter.
The drug possession charge stems from an Aug. 4, 2017, incident involving an ongoing investigation by the state Attorney General’s office and county drug task force in which heroin was being distributed.
