Man given 12 years; pair of felonies

A local man with a history of drug-related offenses has been ordered to serve 12 years with the Indiana Department of Corrections.

The sentencing of David Allen Ward, 46, comes two months after he pleaded guilty to burglary as a Level 4 felony and dealing in a counterfeit substance as a Level 6 felony.

With no time suspended, Tuesday’s sentencing by Bartholomew Superior Court 1 Judge Jim Worton was just under the maximum that could have been legally imposed on the Central Avenue resident.

Worton cited several factors in his decision including an extensive history of criminal behavior and revoked probations, as well as an unwillingness to see drug addiction treatment.

The burglary on April 28, 2016, happened at a residence on Joseph Cox Court, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Unknown to Ward at the time, he was under video surveillance when he broke a window to get inside and steal a television, computer tablet, video game console and a number of games, the affidavit stated.

As part of his sentence, Worton ordered Ward to pay $1,472 in restitution to the burglary victim’s insurance company.

Ward also was under surveillance on Nov. 19, 2015, when he sold a substance he claimed was methamphetamine for $100 in a Columbus park, court records state.

When tests showed the substance was fake, the customer took it back to Ward — who provided the buyer with real methamphetamine and $30, the affidavit stated.

After several months of investigation, Ward was arrested during an August 2016 sweep of warrants where 16 people were taken into custody on drug charges.

In exchange for Ward’s guilty pleas, the prosecution agreed to drop a number of other charges related to the two incidents, as well as two separate open cases.

The dropped cases from last spring involved two counts of possession of methamphetamine, two counts of possession of paraphernalia, and unlawful possession of a syringe.

However, there still is one open case against Ward in Bartholomew Superior Court 2 that stems from a September 2015 arrest for possession of methamphetamine and possession of paraphernalia.

Judge Kathleen “Kitty” Tighe Coriden recently postponed Ward’s March jury trial, and is not expected to have him back in her courtroom until April, court records state.

In addition, Marion County records show a theft conviction last March in Indianapolis that resulted in a two-year sentence will be added to Ward’s Bartholomew County sentences.