A man who had been arrested in September when police discovered a methamphetamine lab operation inside a hotel room in Knox received his sentence in the Starke Circuit Court this week. Richard Garrison, Jr., was arrested alongside several others on Sept. 1, 2012, when police arrived at the Super Value Inn to issue an arrest warrant and stumbled upon a room housing active methamphetamine labs, paraphernalia, methamphetamine, and a slew of other drugs.
Police searched occupants, Deborah Clemons, Jeremiah Johnson, Lolus Johnson, Sheila Johnson, James Borton, and Garrison, and turned up a cache of drugs.
A plea agreement was filed for Garrison to plead guilty to a Class D felony charge and the state would dismiss the B felony, but Judge Kim Hall rejected the agreement in January and set a status hearing for Feb. 1.
On Feb. 5, Garrison pleaded guilty to Dealing in Methamphetamine as a Class B felony and Judge Kim Hall sentenced him to eight years in the Department of Corrections with no time suspended. He also pleaded guilty to violating his probation and received an additional year in the DOC. Other charges were dismissed as part of the plea agreement between the prosecutor and Garrison’s counsel, including Possession of Chemical Reagents or Precursors with Intent to Manufacture as a Class D felony, Possession of Methamphetamine as a Class D felony, and Possession of Marijuana as a Class A misdemeanor.
The court recommended to the DOC that Garrison be admitted into the CLIFF program or a methamphetamine rehabilitation program. He was given 158 days time served.
