An arraignment was held for an 18-year-old Coatesville man on weapons and drug charges. William Shockley was charged with Carrying a Firearm Without a License, Recklessly Endangering Another Person, and Possession of Marijuana. It is believed that these charges stem from a shooting incident last Memorial Day at Barnard and Adams Streets in which a man was shot in the leg, allegedly during a dispute between a group of juveniles from Coatesville and West Chester. The actors then allegedly led police on a vehicle pursuit from West Chester through East Bradford, West Bradford, Caln, and East Fallowfield before the actors crashed their car in the area of Oak Street on the south side of Coatesville. Shockley was committed to Chester County Prison in lieu of 10 percent of $10,000 bail and was ordered to be placed on electronic home monitoring upon release. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for next Friday. (15-1-04, CR-0000147-07).
The wheels of justice, however, came to a grinding halt as a defendant facing trespassing charges filed by WCU Police arrived unfashionably late (ie. "on-time" if it were Paris Hilton). William Parker, 20, of Philadelphia, wasn't present in court when his case was called on the list at the start of the session. Midway through the early waivers and plea deals, Parker managed to show up for his scheduled hearing. This, unfortunately, held up court for nearly 30-40 minutes while the ADA and police spoke to Parker about his case.
Ultimately, charges of Unsworn Falsification to Authorities were withdrawn in exchange for waiving a preliminary hearing on charges of Criminal Tresspass and Disorderly Conduct. Such a wonderful way for 2 WCU Police officers and 2 WCU security officers to waste 2 hours out of their busy day. (15-1-04, CR-0000106-07)
Another defendant who arrived late came thisclose to having a bench warrant issued for his arrest. Donald Williams, 22, of Philadelphia, was facing drug charges when he arrived about 2 hours late for court. When the defendant finally made it to court, Judge Knapp showed Williams a copy of an unsigned bench warrant, indicating that the defendant was very close to getting commited to Chester County Prison for failure to appear. His hearing was continued to June 22; he'd better treat this as a lesson learned. (CR-0000123-07)
Meanwhile, delays notwithstanding, the preliminary hearings began shortly after 11:00. The first hearing involved Paul Hally, 34, of West Chester, who was charged with Retail Theft following an alleged incident at Rite Aid at Gay and Walnut streets. A clerk at the store testified that at approximately 17:30 on the evening of January 31, Hally allegedly attempted to steal 3 digital cameras valued at $39.99 each from the store. The clerk testified that Hally allegedly told him and a loss prevention officer that a hispanic male "claimed it was okay to take them." The case was held for trial in Common Pleas Court.
Hally, as was reported earlier in the week, was apprehended one week ago today during a pedestrian stop on South Matlack Street for failing to appear for a previous court date. In response to a bail motion by the defense, Hally's prior record was disclosed, including:
- A 1997 guilty plea on drug possession charges (CP-15-CR-0000989-1997), with an unknown sentence stemming from a case in East Whiteland
- A 1997 guilty plea on prowling charges (CP-15-CR-0002959-1997), with a sentence of 1 year probation, also from East Whiteland
- A 2000 guilty plea on simple assault charges (CP-15-CR-00002795-1999), with a sentence of 2 years probation from West Goshen
- A 2001 guilty plea on DUI charges (15-1-01/CR-0000433-00; CP-15-CR-00004492-2000) from a traffic stop initiated by Sgt. Jeffery Ditz in the borough
- A 2005 guilty plea on a summary charge of Retail Theft in West Goshen (15-2-03, NT-0001217-04)
During the bail reduction portion of the hearing, Hally testified that he had been in drug and alcohol rehab in the Kensington section of Philadelphia in recent months, and claimed miscommunication between himself and his probation officer as a reason why he failed to appear last month.
Hally's bail was reduced to 10 percent of $1,500; it is unknown as to whether it was posted as of the time of this inital posting.
In the second hearing of the day, which wrapped up the day's session, a 24-year-old man faced a DUI charge relating to an early morning accident Uptown earlier this year. P/O Robert Kuehn testifed that at 04:15 on the morning of January 10, the defendant, John Cooper Molina, was involved in a car vs. pole MVA on the 100 block of East Gay Street. Molina allegedly drove his vehicle the wrong way down Gay Street prior to the accident. The defendant was transported to Chester County Hospital by GFAC, where he was treated for injuries. While awaiting GFAC's arrival, P/O Kuehn testified that Molina's eyes were bloodshot, his speech was slurred, and he had a difficult time maintaining his balance. Upon further investigation and a subpoena of his medical records, it was determined that Molina's blood alcohol content level was .23, almost three times the legal limit for intoxication.
Despite the defense's attempts to discredit the report obtained by the police over what seemed to be an almost ticky-tack issue (namely, an attempt to confirm the time of the report, which P/O Kuehn testifed was nearly 30 minutes after the report of the accident), Molina was held for trial at Common Pleas Court. Molina was committed to Chester County Prison on a detainer out of Delaware County.
According to court records, Molina pled guilty in October 2006 on a DUI charge filed by Marple Township Police in April 2006. According to court records, Molina's BAC was over twice the legal limit in that incident as well (CP-23-CR-0005971-2006). Presumably as a result of this arrest, Delaware County Common Pleas Judge Patricia Jenkins issued a warrant for Molina's arrest for violation of his probation last month.
The day wrapped up when a defendant facing drug charges voluntarily responded to an arrest warrant. Stephen Gensel, 22, of West Chester, appeared in court to respond to one count of Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphanalia. Gensel is expected to appear in court next Friday and is presently free on 10 percent of $2,500 bail. (15-1-04, CR-0000156-07)
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