COURT NEWS

By DEBRA HAIGHT
BCR Correspondent

NILES – Several prison sentences were handed down in Berrien County Trial Court in Niles this week.

A Benton Harbor man was sentenced to prison for resisting and obstructing police earlier this year near Berrien Springs.

Nicholas Gerard Baldwin, 40, of Parkway in Benton Harbor, pleaded guilty to

resisting and obstructing police and use of methamphetamine and was sentenced to 12 to 24 months in prison on the resisting charge and credit for time served, 59 days, on the drug charge. He must pay $198.

The incident occurred March 9 near Lake Chapin in Buchanan Township when he resisted a Michigan State Police trooper trying to arrest him.

“His record speaks for itself,” Assistant Prosecutor Gerald Vigansky said. “If we put him on probation, he will probably fail. Maybe prison is the place for him to go.”

Defense attorney asked for a probation sentence, noting that Baldwin had never received the drug treatment help he has needed. “I apologize for my actions, I don’t want to go back to prison,” Baldwin said. “It’s definitely not the place for me.”

When asked by Berrien County Trial Judge Charles LaSata why he continues to commit crimes, Baldwin blamed “bad judgment.”

“Part of the reason I’m not giving you probation is that you’ve had multiple bond violations,” Judge LaSata said. “Prison is the appropriate place for you. If you want to avoid prison, don’t keep committing new crimes.”

Lowell Rodney Benson, 60, pleaded guilty to resisting and obstructing police and disturbing the peace and was sentenced to 12 to 24 months in prison on the resisting charge and credit for time served, 60 days, for disturbing the peace. He must pay $198 in fines and costs.

The incident occurred April 12 against Niles police officer Scott Swanson at locations in the Niles downtown.

While Benson apologized for his actions and said he had not been in the right frame of mind at the time of the incident, Judge LaSata was skeptical. “I don’t believe you, you have 53 convictions, your record speaks loudly,” he said. “When you’re in jail, you’re abusive and loud. You’re just a bad person. You’ve demonstrated your inability to function in society.”

Michael Ray Myers, 30, of Indian Lake Road in Niles, pleaded guilty to

identity theft and motor vehicle code false certification and was sentenced to 12 months to five years in prison for identity theft and credit for time served, 64 days, for the other charge. He must pay $198 in fines and costs.

The incident occurred Sept. 27, 2017 at the Niles Secretary of State’s office when he used the identification information of another man, Chad Duncan, along with his own photo in obtaining a driver’s license.

Defense attorney Edwin Johnson said Myers was doing some things right while doing other things wrong. Johnson said Myers had opened a new business and used someone else’s information to get around the fact that his own license was suspended.

“He did this while he was clean from drugs and trying to provide for his family,” Johnson said.

Shauntay Maurice Wade, 38, of North Third Street in Niles, pleaded guilty to third degree home invasion and was sentenced to 12 months to five years in prison and has credit for 38 days already served. He must pay $198 in fines and costs.

The incident occurred Sept. 16 when he broke into his ex-girlfriend’s apartment and took pictures of her and her new boyfriend while they were sleeping. He later texted the pictures to her.

“I’ve seen a lot of domestic abusers who use different techniques to control and intimidate,” Judge LaSata said. “Yours tops the list. You break in and take photos of them in bed while they were asleep and then texted her to show that you could get to her.”