MADISON MAN GETS LIFE AFTER COCAINE CONVICTION

Alonzo Horton Given Maximum Sentence As Habitual Offender

A Madison man was sentenced to life in prison Wednesday after a jury
convicted him on a charge of possession of crack cocaine.

Alonzo Horton, 50, of 121 Raddison St., Madison, was sentenced as a
habitual offender by Circuit Judge Joe Battle. Battle could have sentenced
Horton within a range between 15 years and life, said Assistant District
Attorney Don Rizzardi.

''The judge maxed him out,'' said Rizzardi. ''That means he'll be eligible
for parole in about eight years, and we'll see him again in the not too
distant future.''

But Horton may have to serve the rest of a federal drug sentence.

Police were watching Horton on Jan. 18, 2000, when he allegedly sold crack
cocaine to a drug informant, Rizzardi said. Officers chased and caught
Horton in the parking lot of a Huntsville motel. He was charged with
possession of a half ounce of cocaine rocks.

According to court records, Horton was convicted in 1992 for possessing
crack cocaine, and Battle sentenced him to five years in prison. The judge
split the sentence and ordered Horton to spend a year in jail and the rest
on probation.

On June, 11, 1994, Horton pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of
possessing crack cocaine with an intention to distribute crack cocaine and
conspiracy to sell the drug, according to court records. U.S. District
Judge U.W. Clemon sentenced Horton to serve seven years and six months on
each of the two charges. The sentences were to run concurrently.

Federal authorities have said Horton now will have to serve the balance of
his federal sentence, Rizzardi said.