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Judge Ben Hooper imposes sentences
A Newport man involved in two pizza robberies, Tuesday was ordered to serve a nine year sentence. The term was imposed by Judge Ben Hooper in Cocke County Circuit Court. Christopher Jamal Haney, 22, White Oak Avenue, Newport, pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery, aggravated assault, conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary, theft over $1,000 and enhanced aggravated burglary, in the agreement negotiated by Asst. D.A. Tonya Thornton and Defense Attorney Roger Smith. Haney was scheduled to go to trial on Thursday. The charges stem from the aggravated robberies of Christopher Leffew, a delivery man for Papa John's Pizza in Newport and later on December 27, 2012, the robbery of Little Caesar's Pizza in the Five Rivers Plaza Shopping Center, as well as the burglary of the Mark Hill home on Lehigh Drive, Newport, in May, 2013. The defendant also will make restitution of $125 to Little Caesar's and $4,787 to Hill. A co-defendant, Steven McKinney, 20, Short Drive, Morristown, previously pleaded guilty to the offenses and was given an eight year sentence. Judge Hooper also accepted a guilty plea from Marsha Bible,57,Bear Creek Road, Bybee, in the November, 2013 theft of the purse of Sonya Hurst as she attended the funeral of her father Carroll Marshall at Centerview Missionary Baptist Church. The victim saw a white female walking around her vehicle just before the theft was discovered, and Bible was identified after investigators released the photo of a woman who used Hurst's credit cards at three different local stores. The victim asked the court to impose a significant sentence saying she found it inconceivable that the defendant would steal a purse while she was with family at her father's funeral. In response Bible sobbed as she looked at Hurst saying she was sorry. The court indicated that Bible said she stole the purse because family members had stolen from her. But Judge Hooper pointed out that the defendant had declined to prosecute those offenders. The defendant pleaded guilty to the burglary of a vehicle, theft and five counts of the fraudulent use of a credit card. She was given a four year sentence, but because Bible had served eight months in jail she was released and the balance of the term will be on probation. In addition, Bible will make restitution totaling $2,182. She also faces similar charges in Hamblen County. During the past two days, the court dealt with a total of 27 cases of defendants who had violated their probation or community corrections sentences. "It's a small percentage of the cases I hear, but they are ruining it for the whole county," he said. "It's the very people we try to help, that don't do anything. This county is dying...the population is decreasing." The court went on to say people move into the local community because it is beautiful. "They build nice homes...and they are burglarized," said an obviously unhappy Judge Hooper.
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Return to Today's News Stories - Front PageThursday, April 29, 2021
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