Carbon County court - DUI
Seven defendants, who previously pleaded guilty, were sentenced on Thursday in Carbon County court on driving under the influence and related charges.
Judge Joseph J. Matika imposed the sentences on the following:Tracy Ann Filchner, 51, of Lehighton, was sentenced to serve 30 days in the county prison followed by 23 months in the county's Intermediate Punishment Program with the first 60 days on electronic monitoring. She must also pay a fine of $500, one-year license suspension, zero tolerance for drug and alcohol use and render 100 hours of community service. She was given credit for 30 days spent in a inpatient rehabilitation program and paroled.She was arrested on Nov. 4, 2015, by Franklin Township police along Fairyland Road. Police initially responded to a domestic dispute and made a vehicle stop in connection with that incident. A test showed a 0.27 BAC.Louis F. Buono II, 53, of Trenton, New Jersey, was sentenced to serve 48 hours to six months in jail, pay a fine of $500, one-year license suspension, render 25 hours of community service and make restitution for damages to property of KME in Nesquehoning of $42,000.He was arrested on Dec. 31, 2015, along Route 54. He struck a wall on the KME property and fled the scene but was later located. A test revealed a 0.25 BAC.Rogelio Ortiz, 28, of Palmerton, was sentenced to serve 90 days to five years in jail, a fine of $1,000, license suspended for 18 months, pay a fine of $1,500, zero tolerance for drug and alcohol use, and render 100 hours of community service. Currently an inmate in the prison, he was given credit for 65 days already served. On a summary offense he was fined $200 and costs.He was arrested on April 5, 2016, by state police at Lehighton along Alley E in Palmerton. A test revealed the presence of a controlled substance.Brandon Michael Grammes, 28, of Albrightsville, was sentenced to serve 72 hours to six months in jail, a fine of $1,000, one-year license suspension and render 25 hours of community service. He was given credit for three days already served and paroled.He was arrested on Oct. 22, 2015, along Route 209 by Nesquehoning police after being involved in a crash. A test revealed the presence of a controlled substance.April Marie Yurkonis, 38, of Pottsville, was sentenced to serve 10 days to 24 months in jail, a fine of $500 and one-year license suspension on the DUI count. On a charge of driving under suspension - DUI related, she was sentenced to serve 45-90 days in jail, but must serve the entire 90 days, and a fine of $1,000. She must also render 75 hours of community service and zero tolerance for drug and alcohol use. She will begin the jail term at 9 p.m. Jan. 28 and serve it on consecutive two-day weekends.She was arrested on April 23, 2015, along Interstate 80 in Kidder Township by state police at Fern Ridge. A test revealed a 0.16 BAC.William Fulton Ashmore Jr., 28, of Lansford, was sentenced to serve 72 hours to six months in jail, a fine of $1,000, one-year license suspension and render 25 hours of community service. He will begin the jail term at 10 p.m. Jan. 28.He was arrested on May 12, 2016, along Mermon Avenue by Nesquehoning police. A test revealed the presence of a controlled substance.Robert L. Werner, 24, of Coaldale, was sentenced to serve 90 days to two years in jail followed by three years of probation, a fine of $1,500, license suspended for 18 months and zero tolerance for drug and alcohol use. He will begin the jail term at 9 a.m. on Feb. 3 and serve it on consecutive three-day weekends.He was arrested on Aug. 1, 2015, along Route 209 by Lansford police. A test showed the presence of a controlled substance.Each defendant must also pay court costs of about $1,000, a $50 per month supervision fee while on probation or parole and follow all recommendations of their drug and alcohol evaluation.