SIDNEY — The Shelby County Common Pleas Court handed down several sentences during the weeks of March 14 and March 21 for driving under the influence, theft and tampering with evidence, among other charges.
Benjamin David Creech, 35, of Piqua, was sentenced to three days in the Shelby County Jail and 24 months in prison with three days of jail credit and up to two years of discretionary post-release parole. Creech is required to pay a fine of $375, his driver’s license is suspended for one year, and the Ohio State Highway Patrol has been authorized to destroy or dispose of a Polytechnologies P80 PFS99 mm semi-automatic handgun and a Black Eagle Arms .357 Magnum Revolver handgun. This is due to charges of having weapons while under disability, a third-degree felony, and operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs of abuse, a first-degree misdemeanor. He was previously indicted on two charges of having weapons while under disability, both third-degree felonies, two charges of carrying a concealed weapon, both fourth-degree felonies, two counts of improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle, both fourth-degree felonies, possession of drugs, a fifth-degree felony, and operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs of abuse, a first-degree misdemeanor, but all but two charges were dismissed. Creech possessed two guns and Alprazolam while under the influence of drugs while driving, having previously been convicted of numerous drug-related felonies.
Amber Burks, also known as Amber Long, 37, of Sidney, was sentenced to five years of community control and treatment at WORTH or other Community Based Correctional Facility (CBCF) with four days of jail credit. She is also required to pay a mandatory fine of $1,350, her 2007 Ford SUV has been forfeited, and her license has been suspended for three years due to one charge of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs of abuse, a fourth-degree felony. She was initially indicted on charges of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs of abuse, a fourth-degree felony, and driving under suspension, a first-degree misdemeanor, but the latter charge was dismissed. She was previously convicted of similar charges in the Sidney Municipal Court on Feb. 25, 2015, Jan. 27, 2016, and April 30, 2019.
William Lowery, III, 34, of Sidney, was sentenced to two to three years in prison at the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections and 18 months to three years of mandatory post-release parole with seven days of jail credit for failing to provide a change of address, a second-degree felony. He was previously convicted on two counts of rape in Montgomery County.
Caleb David White, 31, of Sidney, was sentenced to five years of community control, treatment at WORTH or other CBCF and completion of the Vivotrol program with 62 days of jail credit for theft, a fifth-degree felony. White knowingly stole a Chase Disney credit card without the owner’s consent.
Lindsey N. M. Skeens, 26, who is in the Shelby County Jail, was sentenced to five years of community control, treatment at WORTH or other CBCF and completion of the Vivotrol program with 22 days of jail credit. Skeens must also obtain a GED. This was a result of attempted tampering with evidence, a fourth-degree felony. Skeens was initially indicted for assault, a fourth-degree felony, and tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony, but the former charge was dismissed. Skeens knowingly attempted to cause physical harm to a Sidney police officer and ingested Fentanyl to impair its availability of evidence. In a separate case, Skeens received the same sentencing with 92 days of jail credit for two counts of trafficking in drugs, both fourth-degree felonies. She was initially indicted on two counts of trafficking in drugs, both fourth-degree felonies, and two counts of aggravated trafficking in drugs, third and fourth-degree felonies, but two charges were dismissed. Skeens knowingly sold or offered to sell methamphetamine and Fentanyl in the vicinity of a school.
