Several requests for jury trials added to August court calendar

RIDGWAY - Adding to an already packed court docket, at least four more jury trials were added to the August session during "Call of the List" on Friday at the Elk County Courthouse in Ridgway.

"Call on the List" is the same as a calendar call. It refers to a session of the court that is held to enquire into the status of cases. In calendar calls, usually, the cases are called by name and are scheduled for trial if the parties indicate readiness. In Elk County Court it is also generally the last day a defendant can accept a negotiated plea deal for anything less than the highest rated charge on the criminal complaint. Due to the Fourth of July holiday, jury selection did not take place on Monday as would normally be the case, but was pushed forward to July 12 beginning at 9 a.m. in the Elk County Courthouse on Main Street in Ridgway.

Tonya Lynn Lovell, 39, of Johnsonburg requested a jury trial on her singular charge of endangering the welfare of children as a parent or guardian.

Andrew James Beck, 32, of Bradford, is also requesting a jury trial on multiple charges he acquired in February 2021. Beck has charges in McKean, Cameron, and Elk Counties dating back years. For the current case, he is charged with five counts of possession of a controlled substance, two charges of drug paraphernalia, one count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to manufacture or deliver, and summary traffic charges.

Breanna Rae Park, 33, of Kersey, has also requested a jury trial. She is charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Park was arrested after attempting to hide from authorities in a crawl space under a home in five feet of standing water back in March. Her criminal record stretches across three counties, Allegheny, Armstrong, and Elk, with almost all of the cases involving controlled substances and associated charges. Park also pled guilty to other charges of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, possession of controlled substances, and tampering or fabricating evidence in a separate criminal case in Elk County and was sentenced to at least 18 months in Elk County Prison.

Bryan Patrick Galvin, 38, of Ridgway, requested a bench trial for his first offense DAI (Driving After Imbibing). A bench trial is one where there is no jury present and the opposing council presents the evidence and testimony to an assigned judge who decides on the merits of the case and renders their verdict.

There were also several other cases decided in the lengthy court proceedings that began at 8:30 a.m. on Friday.

Brennen Alexander Klawuhn, 21, of Johnsonburg, accepted a plea deal on Friday in which he pled guilty to indecent assault, and will spend the next 36 months on strict probation following the incident that took place in February. Due to the nature of the offense, Klawuhn was evaluated by the Sexual Offenders Assault Board (SOAB) and was found to not be a sexually violent offender, but will still have to register as a Tier 2 sexual offender for the next 25 years, The plea deal was agreed to by his victim who faced Klawuhn in court and gave a detailed account of the incident with the support of their family. They requested and received, an advanced "nocontact" order where Klawuhn will make no attempts to contact the victim through any means, avoid any place where they live or work, and must remove himself immediately if they show up to a community event, movie, or other activity and notice one another.

Timothy James Cribbs, 38, or Ridgway, received a year of probation and a no-entry order to the Elk County Housing Authority in Johnsonburg after pleading guilty to criminal trespass at the site back in May 2021.

Steven Allen Frampton, 28, of Ridgway, will be on probation for two years following his guilty plea to access device fraud and receiving stolen property.

Melissa Jean Pearsall, 27, of Wilcox, pled guilty to recklessly endangering another person and will be on probation for a year and required to take mandatory drug and alcohol classes along with a parenting class.

Thomas Patrick Struble, 62, of Kersey, is required to take drug and alcohol classes and will be on probation for a year following his guilty plea to simple assault charges.

Kayla Ann Gillen, 32, of St. Marys, pled guilty to a DAI charge as well as careless driving and will be required to take drug and alcohol classes as well as a driving class over the next year while she is on probation.

Stephanie A. Schatz, 35, of Johnsonburg, pled guilty in three separate cases to false reports to law enforcement, retail theft, and possession of drug paraphernalia and will spend the next two years on probation and take drug and alcohol classes.

Samantha Jewel Weber, 25, of Hyde, pled guilty to providing false reports to law enforcement concerning an arson fire in Johnsonburg in 2020. She was sentenced to 28 days of incarceration, with credit for time served, and will be on probation for the next year.

David Jonas Brandt IV, 31, of Kersey, pled guilty to possession of a controlled substance with intent to manufacture or distribute and criminal use of a communication facility after using his cell phone to arrange the sale of methamphetamine. He will spend the next four years on probation, and agreed to forfeit $1,119 that he gained through the sale of narcotics. He will also pay $5,000 in fines as a deterrent to his engagement in the illegal drug trade as Pennsylvania seeks to stem the scourge of substance use disorder through the imposition of hefty fees for drug convictions.

Andrew Cole Shaffer, 28, of Huntingdon, PA, pled guilty to theft by unlawful taking charges and will spend the next year on probation and be required to pay $890.90 in restitution to his victim who also requested a no-contact order.