Settlement conference granted in burglary case
Tuesday morning’s hearing in Yuma County Superior Court for one of the two suspects charged in connection to a string of burglaries, including one at a Foothills business, was supposed to be for a change of plea or have a trial date set.
Neither happened. Instead, a Yuma County Superior Court judge granted a request from attorney Richard Edgar, who represents Justice Donnelly, for a settlement conference, which is to be held early next month.
A settlement conference is a meeting between the prosecution and defense in an attempt to reach a mutually agreeable resolution to the case without having to go to trial. They are usually conducted by the judge in their chambers.
When asked by Superior Court Judge Stephen Rouff, which he would prefer, having the case assigned to the presiding judge to appoint a judge to conduct the conference, or if he wanted him to do it, Edgar chose the latter.
Donnelly, who appeared out of custody, has been charged with 13 counts of burglary, five counts of theft of means of transportation and one count of theft and two counts of criminal damage.
In addition to setting the settlement conference for 2:30 p.m. on April 10, Judge Rouff, who is presiding over the case, also scheduled a status conference for 8:30 a.m. on April 17.
According to the sheriff’s office, in October deputies responded to the 12800 block of South Frontage Road in reference to a burglary that had already happened.
Upon arrival, deputies met with the reporting party who stated someone had entered the business and pried open two cash registers. They were also told the business had been burglarized earlier in the week, but not reported.
Deputies, however, were able to recover video surveillance that eventually led to Donnelly’s arrest in the case.
The following day the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Bureau served a search warrant in the 10300 block of South Typhoon Avenue.
During the search of the home, investigators found evidence linking the suspects to a total of 17 burglaries that occurred in the county, as well as several that had occurred in the city of Yuma that were under investigation by the Yuma Police Department.
The YCSO and YPD were working closely in their investigation of these cases. A second suspect — a 17-yearold male juvenile — was also arrested.