Category: Court News

A distraught Bullhead City woman begged for reconsideration when it became clear that a judge was rejecting probation and  sending her to prison during a May 3 sentencing hearing in Kingman. Debra Couch, 53, told Mohave County Superior Court Judge Derek Carlisle she entered a plea agreement resolving two drug cases hoping to avoid prison. “I would have won at trial,” Couch said. “Ms. Couch. You didn’t take it to trial. You pled guilty,” Judge Carlisle responded. Carlisle told Couch that her guilty plea to attempted possession of dangerous drugs for sale discounted her claim that she was merely present in…

A Monday shooting in north Kingman is under investigation by the Mohave County Sheriff’s office. Deputies responded to the 4800 block of Jagerson Lane at approximately 8:00 p.m. “A 27-year-old white male had sustained gunshot wounds during an altercation in a vehicle,” an agency news release stated. “The victim was shot twice and was able to exit the vehicle to get to a nearby residence for assistance.” Chief Deputy Sheriff Dean Mckie said the victim was transported to a local hospital for treatment of what appeared to be non-life-threatening injuries. Detectives are trying to identify the shooting suspect who is…

A young father from Lake Havasu City faces prosecution following the Saturday death of his daughter who was left unattended in a hot vehicle. Lake Havasu City police responded at about 1:25 p.m. to the report of an unresponsive child in the area of Cadet Lane and McCulloch Boulevard. “Officers learned that 23-year-old Ty Martin had left his infant daughter unattended in his car for approximately 45 minutes to an hour while visiting his friend, 23-year-old Noah Grabowski in the 40 block of Tailstar Lane,” a news release stated. It said CPR efforts were initiated but that the 18-month-old girl never…

Probation lasts 15 minutes as he pays fine A former Kingman area fire chief convicted of conflict of interest by a jury of his peers entered Friday’s sentencing hearing with the threat of jail hanging over his head. Wayne Eder, 55, and his throng of supporters left the Mohave County courthouse jubilant that a local judge imposed the most lenient sentence possible, boosting his hope of returning to the fire service industry to continue his career. Involved attorneys thought Eder would be placed on probation. Prosecutor James Schoppmann and defense attorney Lee Novak also said it would be proper to leave…

The former Chief of a politically volatile north Kingman fire district will be sentenced Friday following his April jury trial conflict of interest conviction. Wayne Eder, 55, is expected to be placed on probation, but prosecutor James Schoppmann is asking that he be sent to jail as well. Eder was serving as interim chief of the Northern Arizona Consolidated Fire District (NACFD) and was an applicant for promotion to chief when he awarded district business to a company owned by Victor Riccardi, a board member who subsequently voted in favor of Eder’s promotion. Schoppmann argued Eder was “greasing the skids”…