Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
Key West Citizen reporter Timothy O'Hara pleaded no contest Thursday to a reduced felony charge of marijuana possession and received 18 months of drug-offender probation. He had faced five felonies and prison.
On Dec. 17, Key West police pulled over O'Hara, 41, after they reportedly spotted him running a red light around 8 p.m. at White and Southard streets.
A subsequent search of his 2001 Isuzu Rodeo turned up 6.9 ounces of pot broken up into eight bags. Police said they were "indicative of street-level narcotics sales and distribution for profit."
They charged O'Hara with one felony count of possession with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a church or school, four felony counts of possessing paraphernalia to conceal drugs and one misdemeanor count of paraphernalia possession.
O'Hara's no-contest plea was to possession of more than 20 grams of marijuana without intent to distribute, a third-degree felony, and possession of paraphernalia, a misdemeanor.
The sentence handed down by Monroe County Circuit Court Judge Mark Jones requires O'Hara to avoid using alcohol and illegal drugs during the term of his probation. He also must undergo two urinalysis screenings per week, attend two Narcotics Anonymous meetings per week and go through a substance-abuse evaluation and recovery plan. If he completes the terms, he can petition to be let off probation in a year.
"It's a favorable resolution for him," said Assistant State Attorney Mark Wilson, "and it rewards him appropriately for having come in and pled guilty at the earliest possible moment instead of dragging this out for months and years as many defendants do."
The Citizen put O'Hara, who covers the Monroe County Commission and Florida Keys Mosquito Control District for the newspaper, on leave following his arrest; he returned to work around Christmas.
NewsHawk: Jim Behr: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: keysnet.com
Author: SEAN KINNEY
Copyright: 2011 Keynoter Publishing Company Inc.
Contact: Contact Us | www.keysnet.com
Website: Reporter gets probation in pot case
On Dec. 17, Key West police pulled over O'Hara, 41, after they reportedly spotted him running a red light around 8 p.m. at White and Southard streets.
A subsequent search of his 2001 Isuzu Rodeo turned up 6.9 ounces of pot broken up into eight bags. Police said they were "indicative of street-level narcotics sales and distribution for profit."
They charged O'Hara with one felony count of possession with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a church or school, four felony counts of possessing paraphernalia to conceal drugs and one misdemeanor count of paraphernalia possession.
O'Hara's no-contest plea was to possession of more than 20 grams of marijuana without intent to distribute, a third-degree felony, and possession of paraphernalia, a misdemeanor.
The sentence handed down by Monroe County Circuit Court Judge Mark Jones requires O'Hara to avoid using alcohol and illegal drugs during the term of his probation. He also must undergo two urinalysis screenings per week, attend two Narcotics Anonymous meetings per week and go through a substance-abuse evaluation and recovery plan. If he completes the terms, he can petition to be let off probation in a year.
"It's a favorable resolution for him," said Assistant State Attorney Mark Wilson, "and it rewards him appropriately for having come in and pled guilty at the earliest possible moment instead of dragging this out for months and years as many defendants do."
The Citizen put O'Hara, who covers the Monroe County Commission and Florida Keys Mosquito Control District for the newspaper, on leave following his arrest; he returned to work around Christmas.
NewsHawk: Jim Behr: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: keysnet.com
Author: SEAN KINNEY
Copyright: 2011 Keynoter Publishing Company Inc.
Contact: Contact Us | www.keysnet.com
Website: Reporter gets probation in pot case
