The following hearings were recently held in Pocahontas County Circuit Court before the Honorable Judges Robert E. Richardson and Patrick I. Via:
In person sentencing was held in the case the State vs Matthew R. Anderson, 30, of Marlinton, wherein the defendant was sentenced to a determinate sentence of five years in the custody of the West Virginia Department of Corrections, fined $5,000 and assessed court costs. Anderson was given 431 days’ credit for time served. For personal safety, the court asked that the defendant be housed at a facility other than Huttonsville Correctional. Center. Anderson had tendered a plea agreement to the court in April pleading guilty to the felony offense of aggravated vehicular manslaughter.
The court received the competency evaluation for Travis Rider, 39, of Marlinton, which found that the defendant is competent to stand trial. The matter is set for trial July 30. A motion to modify bond was denied by the court. Rider was indicted on one count, attempt to commit a felony; one count, trespassing; and one count, harassment. He was remanded to custody.
Plea negotiations are ongoing in the case the State vs Jeffrey Thomas Rose, 29, of Hillsboro. The trial remains on the docket, with a pretrial conference set for June 23. Rose was indicted on one count, strangulation; one count, kidnapping; two counts, domestic battery; three counts, domestic assault; one count, interfering with emergency communications. The defendant was remanded to custody.
A disposition hearing was held on motion to revoke probation in the case the State vs Casey Crabtree, 30, of Marlinton, wherein the special prosecutor asked for a sanction to be imposed. The defendant has not paid on restitution since December 2025. She owes $743.77 and her employer is willing to withhold $150 from her weekly earnings until the amount is paid. The court ordered the resolution to the revocation is modification of probation and sanction for defendant to pay $150 per week to the clerk until the amount is paid. If Crabtree fails to pay, the state may file another revocation, and the sanction will be more severe.
In person sentencing was held in the case the State vs Arnold Schoolscraft, 42, of White Sulphur Springs wherein the court denied a defense motion for alternative sentencing. Schoolcraft was sentenced as to the felony charge of counterfeiting, to not less than two years nor more than ten years with no fine; and as to the offense of unlawful assault on a law enforcement officer, not less than two years nor more than five years in the custody of the WVDOCR. The defendant was given 558 days’ credit for time served. Court costs were assessed as judgment, and the defendant was remanded to custody.
Earl Ray Adkins, 56, of Renick, tendered a written plea agreement to the court wherein he pleaded guilty to the lesser included offense of failure to register as a sex offender or provide notice of registration changes, first offense. The court ordered a pre-sentence investigation report, and sentencing is set for August 6. Adkins was remanded to custody.
