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James has bond reduced to $200,000
In Cocke County Circuit Court on Monday, a man indicted last week on charges of First Degree murder, violation of the sex offender registry and being a felon in possession of a firearm had his bond reduced. Originally set at $500,000, Judge Rex Henry Ogle reduced the bond for Boyd James, 60, Big Creek Road, Hartford, to $200,000. James is charged in the May 25, 2004 shooting death of Randy Grooms, 36, a neighbor. Assistant D.A. Brownlow Marsh told the court the prosecution will not seek the death penalty in the case. Three of four defendants caught up in a money laundering investigation last week also were arraigned by Judge Ogle. Newport Alderwoman Kathy Holt, 50, is being represented by Bryon Delius. She is charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering and three counts of money laundering in that she and James Holt approved the purchase of stolen property by each other and their employees at the convenience store on the Cosby Road. Ms. Holt also allegedly prepared lists in April and May, of merchandise to be stolen and provided to she and James Holt. Cash from the store was allegedly used to purchase the "stolen" items. Her son Kenny Myers, 30, is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. In April he allegedly delivered $200 to James Holt from the business cash register to purchase 12 cartons of cigarettes and 29 packages of candy. On a later date he assisted James Holt in the negotiation to purchase cigarettes, candy and beef jerky from the undercover operative. Myers and Newport Detective Captain Lynn Shults, 54, who is on administrative leave, told the court they will hire their own attorneys. Shults is charged with four counts of official misconduct as well as conspiracy to commit money laundering . He allegedly purchased items which he was told had been stolen from a Harley Davidson dealership. Later he communicated with James Holt the name of the seller and the availability of the stolen clothing and gear. He is charged with making a number of purchases of items which he understood to be stolen. Kathy Holt is free on a $250,000 bond, Detective Lynn Shults is free on a $50,000 bond and Kenny Myers is free on a $10,000 bond. Co-defendant Newport Detective Captain James Holt is in federal custody and Marsh said he won't be in state court until the federal charges of the illegal distribution of drugs and the possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking are resolved. In addition Asst. U.S. Attorney Robert Reeves said last week that additional charges likely are forthcoming when Holt is indicted. Detective Holt currently is charged also on the state presentments with numerous instances of the purchase of what he believed to be stolen merchandise from an undercover operative, including a large quantity of cigarettes and Harley Davidson clothing and gear, on more than 20 occasions, along with ten counts of official misconduct in that he did not arrest the informant when Holt was told the items were stolen merchandise. He also is charged with numerous sales and deliveries of Hydrocodone and Alprazolam in May, June and July, within 1,000 feet of the Cocke County High School. The court also accepted a number of guilty pleas; Diamond Ahrens, 20, Terrace Way, Newport, pleaded guilty to three counts of TennCare fraud in Cocke and Sevier Counties. She failed to tell the prescribing physician that she had picked up similar prescriptions within the previous thirty days. Ahrens was placed on diversion following a similar charge in Greene County. She will serve ten days in jail and the balance of a two year term on probation, and make restitution of $13.70. Brian Donald Carver, 33, Nightingale Way, Newport, was given a ten year term to be served at 35 percent after he pleaded guilty to two counts of the sales and delivery of cocaine and oxycodone, one count of possession of crack cocaine for re-sale as well as resisting arrest and tampering with evidence. Authorities said Carver tried to swallow the evidence at the time of his arrest. "You are a one-man crime wave," the court told the defendant."you've bought the farm; people don't like you selling drugs." In addition to the prison term, Carver will pay a $2,000 fine and make restitution of $823. Jason Yates, 27, Main Street, White Pine, pleaded guilty to attempted aggravated sexual battery charges. He was charged with having inappropriate sexual contact with a seven year-old male in October, 2011. Yates was given a six year sentence, will serve one year in jail and the balance on probation. He also must register as a sex offender and be under lifetime community supervision.
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Return to Today's News Stories - Front PageThursday, April 29, 2021
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Mill Creek Wildfire Update
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