Probation

A Hagerstown woman was sentenced Thursday in Washington County Circuit Court to serve time in prison in two drug cases and for violating probation in a third case. Jennifer Renee Farris, 33, of 12 Snyder Ave., entered guilty pleas to possession of cocaine in 2006 and 2010 cases before Circuit Judge John H. McDowell. She was given concurrent sentences of one year and one day in prison in those cases. McDowell ordered Farris to first serve a six-year sentence for violating probation on a 2003 conviction for possession of narcotics with intent to distribute.

A retired Hagerstown Police Department lieutenant was given probation before judgment after being found guilty in Washington County Circuit Court of assaulting his estranged wife. Timothy M. Wolford, 50, was found guilty of second-degree assault following a bench trial before Judge M. Kenneth Long Jr. Long then struck his finding of guilty and placed Wolford on one year's supervised probation and ordered him to pay $755 in fines and costs. A person who receives probation before judgment can petition the court in the future to expunge the charge if he successfully completes probation, Assistant State's Attorney Leon Debes said after the trial.

The founder of the West Virginia Society of Ghost Hunters, who was found guilty in 2007 of practicing medicine and counseling without a license, failed to abide by the terms of her probation, attorneys said Monday. Susan R. Crites, who was placed on three years of probation in 2008 in lieu of an 18-month jail sentence, failed to get counseling and also failed to pay about $945 in court costs, according to Berkeley County Prosecuting Attorney Pamela Games-Neely. In a hearing Monday, Crites, of Hedgesville, W.Va., was released from further probation supervision, but the unpaid court costs were ordered by 23rd Judicial Circuit Judge Gray Silver III to be converted into a civil judgment against her. Chief Public Defender Deborah A. Lawson told Silver that Crites abided by the terms of her probation otherwise.

Kmart employee gets probation for theft CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. - A 79-year-old Waynesboro, Pa., woman who stole more than $10,000 from Kmart cash registers was sentenced to seven years probation Wednesday. Helen E. Harne, of 505 W. Sixth St., did not address the court before her sentencing in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. "This is terribly embarrassing to her. She wants to put it behind her," said defense attorney Patrick Redding. Harne worked at the customer-service counter of the Waynesboro Kmart at 706 E. Main St. for two years.

Missed appointments, unauthorized changes of address and evidence of drug use combined on Thursday to send Dustin Prendable to prison for four years. During an appearance before Washington County Circuit Judge John H. McDowell, Prendable, 21, of the first block of West Baltimore Street, admitted violating the terms of his probation. That probation was imposed on Nov. 14, 1996, when Prendable was found guilty of third-degree burglary and sentenced to 10 years in prison, with all but 18 months suspended, court records said.

Man sentenced for violation of probation A man who first came to the attention of Hagerstown City Police in 1995 for a knife-wielding incident was back in Washington County Circuit Court Tuesday for violation of probation. Nicholas Brent Santarelli, 36, of Hagerstown, was sentenced to the Washington County Detention Center for six months. He was given credit for the time served since he was picked up in January. The probation violation related to new offenses including a September conviction for assault and resisting arrest and a drunken driving conviction.

Woman given probation in beating case The Hagerstown woman charged with beating her father on Nov. 30 received probation before judgment Tuesday in Washington County District Court. Gladys Irene Dawson, 54, of 479 Mitchell Ave., pleaded guilty to second-degree assault. That plea was stricken by Judge Ralph France and the probation imposed, according to court records. Washington County Assistant State's Attorney Arthur Rozes said Dawson was put on supervised probation for 18 months and fined $425.

Two men accused of egging several vehicles were sentenced to probation Wednesday after being granted probation before judgment, according to Washington County District Court documents. Zachary Bo Green, 19, of 2704 Rohersville Road in Knoxville, Md., was charged in May with nine counts of malicious destruction of property, documents state. All but one of the counts were dismissed in court Wednesday. Another man, Joshua Daniel Wood, 18, of 21614 Black Rock Road in Hagerstown, was charged in the same incident with several counts of malicious destruction of property.

CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. -- Washington County Board of Education member W. Edward Forrest was sentenced Wednesday to serve a year of probation for driving under the influence of alcohol in August. Forrest was sentenced in Pennsylvania by Franklin County Central Court Judge Richard J. Walsh. Walsh said the charges against Forrest would be dropped if he successfully completes the probation. The Franklin County District Attorney's Office agreed to give Forrest accelerated rehabilitative disposition -- a type of probation in Pennsylvania that commonly is granted to first-time offenders who commit minor crimes.

A Virginia man, charged last summer during a sting operation in southern Washington County, received probation before judgment Dec. 29 for assaulting a Maryland State Police trooper. William Frederick Miller, 71, of 510 S. Loudoun St., Winchester, Va., pleaded guilty to second-degree assault in Washington County Circuit Court, according to court records. Judge John H. McDowell placed Miller on probation for 18 months and fined him $200, according to court records. A fourth-degree sex offense was dropped in exchange for the plea, according to court records.