Rejects plea deal and will take case to court trial

A Pedro man indicted on four felony counts rejected the state’s final offer Wednesday in the courtroom of Lawrence County Common Pleas Judge Charles Cooper.

• Christopher Akers, 49, of 363 Private Road 4460, Pedro, previously pleaded not guilty to aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony, having weapons while under disability, a third-degree felony, and receiving stolen property and carrying concealed weapons, both felonies of the fourth-degree.

He rejected the state’s final offer of five years in prison in exchange for a guilty plea, and is facing a maximum sentence of 17 years behind bars if found guilty at trial. Cooper set trial for Aug 9-10, and attorney Gene Meadows is representing Akers in the case.

In other cases:

• Adam Hunt, 34, of 239 Township Road 1287, Chesapeake, admitted community-controlled sanctions (CCS) violations. Cooper sentenced him to seven months in jail.

• Charles Jackson, 43, of 720 S. 10th St., Apt. A, Ironton, previously pleaded not guilty to three counts of trafficking in drugs (methamphetamine), all fourth-degree felonies. In a new case, he pleaded not guilty to possession of drugs (methamphetamine), a fifth-degree felony. Cooper set bond for the new charge at $10,000 OR. Trial in both cases was set for Aug. 13.

• Zachary Jenkins, 27, of 826 S. 10th St., Apt. D, Ironton, admitted CCS violations. Cooper sentenced him to five months in jail.

• Christopher Ratliff, 28, of 1648 State Route 503, Wurtland, Kentucky, pleaded guilty to failure to appear, a fourth-degree felony. In exchange for a guilty plea, a charge of fifth-degree possession of a controlled substance (heroin) in another case was nolled. Cooper sentenced him to four years CCS under intensive supervised probation (ISP) with 17 months reserved, and ordered him to continue treatment at Riverside Recovery Services.

• Steven Stamper-Clark, 19, of 4513 State Route 93, Ironton, pleaded guilty to possession of drugs (methamphetamine), a fifth-degree felony. He was eligible for intervention in lieu of conviction, and Cooper ordered him to receive treatment at Mended Reeds.

• Clay Stark, 49, of 89 Township Road 1169, Proctorville, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of drugs (cocaine, methamphetamine), both fifth-degree felonies. Cooper sentenced him to nine months in jail.

• Leo Ulery, 24, of 322 Spruce St., Ironton, denied CCS violations. Cooper set CCS trial for Aug. 15.

There were no cases in Lawrence County Common Pleas Judge Andy Ballard’s court this week.