Bethany Lawton was sentenced in Starke Circuit Court on Wednesday morning after pleading guilty in a plea agreement to several drug charges.
Lawton, 38, told Starke Circuit Court Magistrate Jeanene Calabrese that she was guilty of dealing in methamphetamine as a Level 4 Felony and possession of methamphetamine as a Level 6 Felony in an incident in Starke County on Aug. 7, 2018. Additionally, Lawton said she was guilty of dealing a narcotic drug (heroin) as a Level 5 Felony and possession of a narcotic drug as a Level 6 Felony in an incident on July 31, 2018.
Starke County Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Micah Cox noted that Lawton has an extensive criminal history that deals with drugs and charges that typically correlate with drug abuse and argued for the maximum penalty on the charges.
Lawton told Magistrate Calabrese that she has been incarcerated since 2018. She is currently housed in the Department of Corrections on drug-related sentences in Elkhart County and Marshall County and stated that she “absolutely needed to be there” to be able to go through the classes and make better choices for herself. When Defense Attorney Nathan Pearson asked her about her recovery efforts in the DOC, she commented that she’s thankful to be able to think straight and have the ability to learn how to live a sober life for the first time in 25 years.
Magistrate Calabrese sentenced Lawton within the discretionary terms of the plea agreement negotiated between the State and the defense. Lawton will serve a total of 15 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections which will be served concurrently, or at the same time, as a sentence in Marshall County. No part of the sentence was suspended. It will be for purposeful incarceration. If Lawton successfully completes the Recovery While Incarcerated program while at the DOC, she will be able to request the court for a modification of her sentence. The recovery program typically lasts 14 months, as stated during the hearing.
Lawton was ordered to pay a $250 drug interdiction fee and $350 to the Starke County Sheriff’s Department.
