METH PUSHER IN EARLY RELEASES

PAINTSVILLE - Four regional jail inmates, including an accused meth cooker
charged in connection with Johnson County's first meth lab bust, were
released Friday as part of Gov. Paul Patton's early release program. Johnny
F. Copley, of Highland Avenue, was released from custody Friday, along with
three others, one of whom was serving an unspecified sentence for being a
"dead beat dad" and another who was serving time for a drug trafficking
offense. Although Copley was included on the governor's list for early
release, jail officials said Tuesday that the prisoner would likely have
been released anyway because his "time was messed up" and Copley had
already served nearly 16 months of a two-year sentence. Copley was charged
with manufacturing and trafficking methamphetamines in July 2001 when the
Johnson County Sheriff's Department and Kentucky State Police raided his
Highland Avenue home, where police discovered the county's first meth lab.
The trafficking charge was later dismissed on a technicality due to an
insufficient supply of the suspected drug being sent for analysis at the
state police lab in Ashland. In July 2002, Copley pleaded guilty to an
amended charge of second-degree trafficking a controlled substance, rather
than face a jury trial on the manufacturing methamphetamine charge. Others
released as part of the early release program and their charges were
Demitrus Simpson, of Campbell County, failure to pay child support; Sandra
Sipps, of Boyd County, trafficking a controlled substance; and Charles
Reed, receiving stolen property. Regional jail administrator Henry "Butch"
Williams said Tuesday that two of the inmates slated for early release were
not set free, though, because of pending charges in other counties. Holds,
which prevent the release of prisoners, had been placed on Sipps and Reed
for an alleged drug trafficking offense and allegedly failing to pay child
support, respectively, Williams said. "Of course, I'm not for the early
release of prisoners," Commonwealth's Attorney Anna D. Melvin said Tuesday.
"I think there's plenty of other avenues to tighten the belt of government
(and counter) the poor management of the state of Kentucky. "Victims should
not be victimized again," she continued. "The laws are weighted toward the
defendant already... This is just a slap in the face of everybody who works
to keep our communities safe." The governor's early release program doesn't
sit too well with another prosecutor in the Big Sandy region. Floyd County
Commonwealth Attorney Brett Turner said he's unhappy with the fact that two
slated for release last week from the Floyd County were charged with drug
offenses. "I can't believe there weren't other people more suitable for
this release," Turner said, referring to the release of Thelma Quillen, who
pleaded guilty to trafficking controlled substances, and Matthew Perkins,
who was convicted of burglarizing a Martin pharmacy in 2001 and stealing
thousands of prescription narcotics. "It's pretty disturbing," Turner said
last week.