Faces 11 years in prison

An Ashland man facing drug charges rejected a plea bargain of five years in prison in Lawrence County Common Pleas Judge Charles Cooper’s courtroom Wednesday.

John F. Wright, 47, of 714 Bellefonte Princess Drive, Ashland, Kentucky, previously pleaded not guilty to complicity to aggravated trafficking in drugs, a second-degree felony, and trafficking in drugs and possession of drugs, both third-degree felonies.

In a controlled buy in November, Wright, allegedly along with co-defendant, Cari L. Collins, 37, of 2088 Township Road 218, Ironton, sold 90 oxycodone tablets with an estimated street value $6,000 to the Lawrence County Drug Task Force and Sheriff’s Office with the assistance of an informant.

With the rejection, Wright is now facing 11 years in prison with trial set for Feb. 18 and 19.

Collins pleaded guilty Wednesday to one count of trafficking in drugs, a second-degree felony. Cooper set sentencing for Feb. 24. Collins will remain in custody until her sentencing date.

In other cases:

• Jason Adkins, 33, of 147 Williams Creek, Rush, Kentucky, appeared for community-controlled sanctions violations. Judge D. Scott Bowling sentenced him to six months in prison with credit for time served since Dec. 28.

• Jeremiah S. Aiken, 21, of 107 Lou Street, South Point, pleaded guilty to domestic violence, a fourth-degree felony. Bowling sentenced him to four years community-controlled sanctions with intensive supervised probation with 17 months reserved. He was also ordered to complete the STAR program.

• Tanya Cagle, 47, appeared for community-controlled sanctions violations. Bowling sentenced her to six months in prison with credit for time served since Jan. 6.

• Tammie Fitzpatrick, 51, of 56 County Road 57 Unit 2, South Point, appeared for community-controlled sanctions violations. Bowling sentenced her to four years community-controlled sanctions with 11 months reserved. She was also ordered to complete the STAR program.

• Janie Francis, 58, pleaded not guilty to tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony, and theft, a first-degree misdemeanor. Bowling set pre-trial for Feb. 17.

• Adam Jenkins, 27, of 601 Washington Street, Coal Grove, previously pleaded guilty to breaking and entering and theft, both fifth-degree felonies. Bowling sentenced him to four years community-controlled sanctions with intensive supervised probation for each count to run concurrently with 11 months reserved.

• Christopher Dickerson, 20, of 2315 Beech St., Ashland, Kentucky, appeared for community-controlled sanctions violations. Cooper sentenced him to four months in the Lawrence County jail with credit for time served since Jan. 5.

• Danielle M. Hamm, 39, of 317 Township Road 276 North, South Point, appeared for community-controlled sanctions violations. Cooper set trial for Feb. 3.

• Wanda S. Fortner, 50, of 144 Township Road 615, South Point, pleaded guilty to trafficking in drugs, a fourth-degree felony. Cooper set sentencing for Feb. 10.

• Michael J. Russell, 21, of 304 Fourth Ave., Chesapeake, pleaded not guilty to counts of aggravated trafficking in heroin and trafficking in heroin, both fifth-degree felonies. Cooper set sentencing for Feb. 10.