REPEAT DRUG OFFENDERS FRUSTRATING RESIDENTS

HUNTINGTON - Lisa Smith is fed up and said the area's alleged drug
offenders are getting out of jail too easily.

Smith, 27, of Marshall Avenue said that in addition to letting them commit
crimes again, it also places the community at an increased risk and sends
the wrong message to her three children.

"They went into a house and arrested some people, and not even an hour
later they were out," she said of an arrest last month along Artisan
Avenue. "It's ridiculous. It's ignorant.

"Come on, we've got little kids. You've got little boys that are looking up
to some of these dealers saying, OAh man, look at what they've got. I want
this. I want that.'

"Make them suffer. Make them do five (years), make them do 10, I don't
care. Get them away from where my kids have got to play."

Local and federal officials said they are doing the best they can with
their financial and legal resources. A list of possible improvements
includes more specific bonding guidelines, tougher sentences and better
communication about each defendant's prior record.

The May shooting of four area teenagers has heightened community concern
about drug trafficking and how the criminal justice system deals with those
cases. Law agencies have stressed that in recent years crack cocaine
dealers from major cities such as Detroit and Columbus set up shop in
Huntington and brought a new level of violence with them.

But frustrations mount when resident see suspects quickly in and out of jail.

For example, when Cheryelthia Glenchelle Holmes was arrested in Huntington
in February on state drug and firearm charges, she was out of jail the next
day, despite the fact that police had seized 7.2 grams of crack cocaine,
other drugs and an 7.62 caliber Tokaron semiautomatic pistol with
ammunition. She was later arrested in Detroit and now faces federal charges.

On June 7, police arrested 19-year-old Roger Gravely Jr. in the 2000 block
of 11th Avenue. Officers confiscated 775 grams of crack cocaine, six
firearms, scales, pills and $5,085 in cash.

Gravely has been arrested four times in the last 13 months on felony state
drug charges, but has served little time in jail prior to his most recent
June 7 arrest.

Both defendants maintain their innocence.

Cabell County Prosecutor Chris Chiles said the justice system must respect
each defendant's civil rights and remember everyone is innocent until
proven guilty. In West Virginia, most defendants are entitled to a
reasonable bond before trial and, once convicted, parole.

Chiles said bonds are also an important in keeping down the county's
regional jail costs. he said if officials would lock up every inmate, not
allowing any to post bond "we'll really be bankrupting this county."

Bonding guidelines

All defendants - expect those charged with capitol offenses of murder or
kidnapping - are entitled to a reasonable bond.

In February, a Cabell County magistrate released Holmes on 10 percent of a
$40,000 bond in February. The amount was paid by Craig Young of Detroit,
according to court documents.

"If you're going to give somebody a $20,000 bond, they shouldn't be able to
come up with just $2,000," Smith said. "That's ridiculous. That's ignorant.
Anybody can come up with $2,000, especially if you're selling drugs."

Joe Ciccarelli, a senior supervisory agent with the FBI, said federal
prosecutors have fewer problems holding individuals because, in most cases,
a judge will grant the U.S. Attorney's desire to remand without bail.

For that reason, state officials will try to move cases to federal status
when possible.

Bond breakers

When an arrestee doesn't obey the terms of his bond, prosecutors can ask
the judge to revoke that privilege.

However, Chiles said his office examines each case based on the seriousness
of the offense, the person's prior criminal history, how dangerous they may
be and a variety of different factors.

"When people keep violating the law and things like that, then at some
point they demonstrate their inability to conform to the law, and that's
when we move to revoke it," Chiles said.

Cabell County Sheriff Chief Deputy Jim Scheidler said most police officers
accept the increased risk involved with arresting repeat offenders as being
part of the job.

"There are some that get out quite easily that should be probably be in
jail," he said. "That is the most frustrating part of law enforcement.

"To where we, the police officers, are continually searching or doing
investigations on people who are out awaiting sentencing, out on bond or
have been a repeat offender. Or some just recently released from prison who
commit crimes again."

Ciccarelli said local officers frustrated with the state's
"catch-and-release" program.

"If you're dealing with the same people over and over again, every time you
deal with somebody you're at risk," he said. "Again it boils down to
resources all across the board. ... That's the dilemma."

A defendant's bond can be revoked for a variety of reasons, including the
subject failing to appear in court, breaking subsequent laws or leaving the
state.

Such action recently was taken against Gravely. Prosecutors moved to revoke
his bond just hours before police arrested him June 7. Chiles' office
dismissed the state charges, and federal cocaine charges were filed Wednesday.

Chiles said his office didn't revoke Gravely's bond earlier because some of
his continued problems were misdemeanors and because his assistants may not
have been aware of the additional felony arrests.

Tougher sentences

The typical drug conviction carries a prison sentence of one to 10 years,
with each convicted felon being eligible for parole after one year.
Defendants also are given credit for time already served. That means some
drug offenders are eligible for parole the moment they are convicted.

Chiles said he supports the state enabling judges to set specific
sentences. Those would allow a judge to sentence a more serious offender to
seven years in prison, while a less serious offender could be sentenced to
two years.

Ciccarelli said federal judges have more authority to hand down tougher
sentences. For instance, the federal system has no opportunity for parole
and, in many cases, there are tougher minimum sentences.

Federal sentencing guidelines also mandate that some punishments run
consecutively to others, eliminating the defendant to ability to serve time
for two violations at the same time.

A review of Cabell County Circuit Court records showed about 22 people have
received sentences for drug-related offenses in the past 12 months. Of
those 22 cases, seven were listed to have suspended sentences and at least
five were listed as misdemeanor violations.

Chiles did not dispute those findings, but said he believes the actual
numbers are higher because the review didn't include cases settled in
magistrate court, and others in which the defendant might have pleaded to
more serious charges or pleaded to an attempt to commit a felony.

"I think that, overall, we have been aggressive to the extent possible with
what law enforcement has been able to do," he said.

So far in 2005, Chiles said two Cabell County grand juries have handed down
43 drug-related indictments.

Chiles said his office also has won numerous drug-related convictions
through "informations." That's when his office and the defense are able to
come to an agreement prior to the indictment phase.