Donald Benton, Jr. of North Judson made his initial appearance in the Starke Circuit Court this week where he faces charges of Intimidation as a Class C felony and Pointing a Firearm as a Class D felony. Benton pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and told Judge Kim Hall that he intends on hiring his own legal counsel. As a result, Hall set an attorney status hearing for Jan. 27 at 9 a.m.
Benton is currently held on a $1500 cash bond and is prohibited from contacting the victims in the case. Benton requested a bond reduction, but the State objected to the request on the grounds that he has a prior felony conviction. Hall made the suggestion that he could possibly lower the bond under the terms that Benton submit to home detention with electronic monitoring, but Benton declined.
His first pre-trial conference date is scheduled for March 1 at 8 a.m., with a second pre-trial conference and plea agreement deadline date of April 19 at 8:30 a.m.
