Five men get prison time for drug crimes

Five men were sentenced to prison time Tuesday in the Fourth Division of the Circuit Court of Union County, with almost all of their sentences relating to drug crimes.

John D. Williams, 58, of El Dorado was sentenced to four years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections (ADC) after pleading guilty to possession of a controlled substance.

According to court documents, in April 2017, a vehicle with Williams in the passenger seat was stopped by police. Williams was asked his name and told police he was Darryl Thrower. When he was unable to provide his Social Security number, a police officer determined he was probably lying about his information.

Williams was asked for his name again, at which point he told officers who he was. When he exited the vehicle, officers discovered his wallet and a can of snuff full of what they believed to be crack cocaine under his seat. At that point, he was arrested.

Williams was originally charged with possession of a schedule I or II controlled substance with a habitual offender enhancement and obstructing governmental operations, a misdemeanor. He was sentenced to four years in the ADC and five years suspended imposition of sentence (SIS) and ordered to pay court costs and fees.

Joseph D. Goodson, 33, of Taylor was sentenced to three years in the ADC and three years SIS after he pleaded guilty to possession of a schedule I or II controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Last July, Goodson was driving erratically when an officer decided to conduct a traffic stop on him, according to court documents. Goodson pulled into the parking lot of the Flamingo Motel on South West Avenue where he continued to navigate erratically.

Instead of stopping, Goodson began driving towards the motel. While the vehicle was in motion, Goodson jumped out and began running; the vehicle continued into the motel.

An officer was eventually able to apprehend Goodson behind an abandoned building on Hillsboro. During a search, officers found a bag containing what appeared to be methamphetamine in one of his pockets. They also located a glass pipe that is commonly used to smoke meth where Goodson was apprehended.

Officers also learned that Goodson had an active warrant for his arrest with the Arkansas Board of Parole Officers and his driving privileges had been revoked.

Deputy prosecutor Carla Gibson chose not to prosecute the habitual offender enhancement as part of a plea agreement with Goodson. The enhancement could have added up to nine years to his sentence.

Mustafa A. Naqvi, 37, of El Dorado was sentenced to six years in the ADC after a plea agreement allowed him to plead guilty to possession of a schedule I or II controlled substance. Naqvi was also facing a habitual offender enhancement and a misdemeanor fleeing charge.

In August, Naqvi was walking on East Main Street when officers on patrol recognized him as having an active warrant out of the Union County Sheriff’s Office. An officer told Naqvi he was under arrest, at which point, according to court documents, he responded that he did not care and fled on foot.

Naqvi was apprehended when he fell during the foot chase. He was later treated for a sprained ankle at the Medical Center of South Arkansas. In court Tuesday, he could be seen walking with a limp, though it is unclear whether that was from the sprained ankle sustained last year or a different ailment.

Naqvi was also sentenced to six years in the ADC for a probation revocation. His two prison sentences will be served concurrently, meaning he will serve both simultaneously.

Naqvi pleaded true to the revocation, which was predicated on his failures to report to his probation officer, other criminal offenses he has been convicted of since entering probation, drug use and other conditions of his parole he violated. Naqvi was on probation after pleading guilty to a 2015 first-degree terroristic threatening charge.

Naqvi was also ordered to pay court costs and fees for both convictions.

John P. Ellis, 24, of Strong pleaded guilty to delivery of a schedule I or II controlled substance and a habitual offender enhancement as part of a plea agreement that lessened his prison exposure. He also pleaded true to two probation revocations.

According to court documents, in June, Ellis sold heroin to a police informant. Ellis was sentenced to 10 years in the ADC and five years SIS along and ordered to pay court costs and fees for that conviction.

Ellis was sentenced to six years in the ADC for each of his revocations. He will serve those sentences consecutively; however, the revocation conviction sentences will be served concurrently with the delivery of a controlled substance sentence, meaning he will spend 12 years in the ADC altogether.

He was initially sentenced to probation in 2016 after a plea agreement in which he pleaded guilty to theft by receiving. He was sentenced to five years probation at that time.

Later that year, Ellis pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated cruelty to animals in a second plea agreement. He was again sentenced to five years probation.

Steven T. Scott, 40, of El Dorado pleaded guilty Tuesday to two counts of delivery of a controlled substance, maintaining a drug premises, possession of a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver and use of drug paraphernalia to manufacture meth or cocaine.

As part of a plea agreement, another possession with intent to deliver charge was not prosecuted.

On two occasions in April, Scott sold crack cocaine to a police informant, according to court documents. El Dorado police detectives executed a search warrant on Scott’s home two months later, where they located drugs, cash and paraphernalia that could aid in the sale of drugs, such as baggies and scales.

Scott was sentenced to 10 years in the ADC on the first delivery of a controlled substance charge; for each other conviction, he was sentenced to five years in the ADC for a total of 35 years in the ADC. He was also sentenced to five years SIS for the second delivery charge, maintaining a drug premises and the first possession charge for a total of 15 years SIS. All of Scott’s sentences will be served consecutively.

An outburst yesterday slowed the court’s return from lunch recess.

Georgia E. Camell, 23, of El Dorado was due in court to face theft charges. After a Monday night arrest, Camell was still remanded to the Union County Jail when court started Tuesday.

After a brief meeting with her lawyer during the lunch recess, the two emerged from a side room with Camell yelling after the attorney.

“I got police brutality,” she said. “How am I going to have a refusal to submit [to arrest] when I called the police? Trespass – when they drove me to the address. … They got me off somebody’s word. My attorney doesn’t want to talk to me.”

A police officer in the courtroom proceeded to drag Camell out, with her telling him to “quit” as they left. Camell was booked into the jail Monday night on charges of criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and refusal to submit to arrest. An El Dorado Police officer could not be reached by press time for details of her arrest.

Caitlan Butler can be reached at 870-862-6611 or [email protected].

Upcoming Events