Sahuarita Municipal Court

Cases were heard on March 17 by Judge Maria Avilez unless otherwise indicated. Information was supplied by Town Prosecutor Chris Wencker.

Rebbecca Sue Strobak, 25, Sahuarita, took the plea bargain on a suspended license charge and pleaded responsible to having a frame that obscured the word Arizona. The court was told that the family car was towed and so her husband was in danger of losing his job because he could not get to work. At the request of the Town Prosecutor, the fine on the frame was waived.

Laura Robin Wilson, 34, Sahuarita, showed proof of license and rabies vaccination for her beagle mix, a neighborhood stray she had taken in, and was given an April 14 court date for follow-up.

Christian Lorenzo Corrales, 18 Arivaca, pleaded conditionally guilty to underage drinking, was given a $75 fee, and $232 in suspended fines contingent upon completing a 16-hour alcohol education program.

Christopher Ryan Wills, 18, Tucson, a friend of Corrales, took the same plea arrangement on the same charge.

Cruz Javier Lugo Jr., 19, Sahuarita, pleaded guilty to underage drinking. He was not offered plea bargain because he had already gone through a diversion, so the judge imposed a $232 fine and an order for 16 hours of alcohol education.

Dylan James Gleason, 18, Sahuarita, pleaded responsible to failing to notify the state to change his license within 10 days after moving and was fined $133. Another charge was dropped after he brought his eyeglasses to court and promised to wear them while driving.

Nicholas Laurence Johnson, 23, Sahuarita, took the standard plea bargain on driving on a suspended license and driving without insurance. He must show a valid license and insurance and if he does, can pay lesser fines totaling about $250 for lesser offenses, or else will face a fine of $562 for the license and more than $900 for the insurance.

Tina M. Estrada, 48. Tucson, pleaded responsible to having no insurance and no registration and was fined $265. a charge of displaying an expired out of state plate was dismissed.

Armando Gilbert Rivera, 29, Tucson, won dismissal of a suspended license charge after he showed evidence that another court had concluded that his identity had been stolen and that was why his license had been suspended, rather than through any action of his own. Identity theft is so rampant that a judicial task force has been created in courts in Tucson to deal with the issue, the prosecutor noted.

Derek John Rech, 19, Green Valley, pleaded conditionally guilty to shoplifting and underage possession of alcohol and was ordered to take the NASP anti-shoplifting program and a 16-hour alcohol education program or face imposition of a suspended fine of $268. Asked if he had anything to say to the court, he said he didn’t understand why Bacardi rum is so expensive. He was accused of taking a bottle of rum from Wal-Mart.

Armando E. Bravo, 20, Amado, pleaded guilty to possession of drug paraphernalia and was fined $268 and given a 16-hour drug education. He was not offered diversion because he had a previous conviction for underage drinking, among others.

Martin Michael Wendling, 55 Sahuarita, who had been charged with a suspended license, showed a valid license in court and pleaded guilty instead to having no license in his possession.

In related cases, Anthony David Bannister, 26, Sahuarita, was able to obtain a misdemeanor compromise on a charge of disorderly conduct because his lawyer, Jim Nesci, saw the victim was in court and worked out a compromise. Bryan Dekens, 41, Sahuarita, charged with disorderly conduct, and his son, Aaron Bryant Dekens, 19, Sahuarita, charged with criminal damage, each won dismissal of charges after Bannister, their victim, signed a compromise.

Wade Herman Caho, 26, Three Points, who was in custody and was seen through video court, pleaded guilty to failure to appear and was sentenced to time served. He still owes $1,676 to the court on a 2003 case, so the judge ordered him held on a $100 bond.

John Wayne Cookson, 36, an inmate in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice prison in Navasota, Texas, was reached by telephone, along with the warden, and pleaded guilty to driving on a suspended license and with an open container of alcohol. He was sentenced to time served.

Lynette Geraldine Reynard, 68, Green Valley, won dismissal of a DUI charge after hitting a tree, after her blood test showed no alcohol or drugs in her system. She had been having fainting spells and now is taking medication, but was not at the time she was cited.

Arreanna Dezerrai Ramstein, 20, Sahuarita, took the standard plea bargain on shoplifting.

Jaime Herman Arrazola, 23, Sahuarita, pleaded conditionally guilty to an open container violation and was ordered to do 16 hours of alcohol education.

On May 19, charges were dismissed for Paul Teso Delgado, 48, Sahuarita, after the victim failed to show up for a domestic violence trial.

Arrests and Citations

Valerie Duplisea, 40, Sahuarita, on March 17, was charged with trespassing after she returned to Wal-Mart, where she was banned following a Feb. 20 shoplifting charge. She was set for an April 14 pre-trial hearing and will have the option of seeking a misdemeanor compromise with the store.

Julianne Marie Valdivievo, 32 Sahuarita, was charged with domestic violence/disorderly conduct and her husband, Richard Josh Valdivievo, 39, was charged with DV/criminal damage on March 8 at their home after an argument and physical struggle. At one point she locked the bedroom door and he admitted kicking in the door and putting it in the garage. He was taken to jail, was released, and witnesses said he returned to the home, against a condition of his release.

Scott A. Trapp, 40, Sahuarita, was cited for DV/criminal damage and Rhonda Casciato, 33, Sahuarita, for DV/criminal damage and DV/assault on March 10 at his home. During an argument in which he was upset about her ex-husband, he called his ex-girlfriend, punched the wall and unplugged the phone when she tried to call 911. She also stabbed him with a ball-point pen, though it did not penetrate. He was taken to jail and later released. She then called police, the court and the prosecutor in an effort to have his condition of release modified so he could return to the home. The change can only be done in court and it was granted on Monday, March 16.

Santiago F. Hernandez, 26, Mesa, on March 3 on Interstate 19 at kilometer post 76, was cited for a non-working brake light, excess window tint, no license in his possession and possession of marijuana. Police stopped him because his temporary tag was covered with plastic that reflected light and made it impossible to see. A passenger then acted nervous and volunteered identification when police had not asked the passenger for that. Police smelled marijuana and an overwhelming odor of cologne, as if it had been used to try to cover up another smell. When police asked the driver, Hernandez, for identification, his cell phone rang and he answered it instead of providing police with ID. Eventually, police discovered a felony warrant from Maricopa County for Hernandez, for an offense for which he could be extradited, so he was taken into custody. A Border Patrol drug dog was brought to the scene and helped locate a partly smoked marijuana cigarette on the car floor.

pfranchine@sahuaritasun.com | 547-9738