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Wayne
White | Managing Editor
LYNDON—Felony charges against the operator of a rural Melvern
animal shelter were resolved Monday with a plea agreement, with
sentencing set for March.
Appearing before District Judge Phillip Fromme in Osage County District
Court, Randall H. Long, 52, entered pleas of no contest to one felony
count of giving a worthless check and a misdemeanor count of possession
of marijuana. Fromme found Long guilty of both charges.
In one complaint, Long was facing 10 charges – nine felony
charges for giving a worthless check and a misdemeanor charge of
criminal damage to property. He was originally charged in May in
Osage County District Court with 18 felony counts of giving a worthless
check.
According to Osage County Attorney Brandon L. Jones, the charges
stemmed from the July 2007 Dogstock, a weekend concert held to benefit
Randall and Susan Long’s animal rescue, Akita Adoption and
Rescue Foundation of Mid-America.
Jones alleged that Randall Long wrote numerous bad checks for services
provided at the event such as bands, stage crews and vendors. The
original charges covered 19 separate victims with a combined loss
of $48,733.45, Jones said. Following a preliminary hearing last
year, nine of those charges were dismissed.
The single worthless check charge Long pleaded to was for a check
written to All American Scaffold in the amount of $7,908.64.
“He knew at that time he did not have sufficient funds in
the bank to honor that check,” Jones told the judge Monday.
“To date, it has not been honored.”
Jones said the combined total of the nine worthless check charges
totaled over $25,000, making the crime a felony.
In a second complaint, Long was charged with possession of marijuana,
possession of paraphernalia, both misdemeanors, and failure to have
a drug tax stamp, a felony. In August, Long told The Herald-Chronicle
the charges resulted from a search warrant executed at his home
in 2007, seeking documents related to the alleged insufficient checks.
“During the search, they located a quanitity of marijuana
in the defendant’s refrigerator and freezer,” Jones
said Monday.
“This was sent to Kansas Bureau of Investigation’s lab.
We did receive a lab report from them July 8, 2008, showing the
substance was in fact marijuana in the defendant’s possession.”
Jones said later that 60.54 grams of marijuana were found during
the search.
The possible penalty for the felony worthless check charge is between
11 months and 34 months in prison with a fine not to exceed $100,000.
The misdemeanor marijuana possession charge has a possible penalty
of up to one year in jail and a $2,500 fine.
Fromme warned Long that despite any agreements between the defendant,
his attorney and the county attorney, the judge could impose any
sentence allowed by law.
“Where I actually have a choice in the matter, I can do as
I please,” Fromme said. He set sentencing for 10 p.m. March
24.
Jones told the newspaper the sentence for Long’s conviction
on the felony offense was presumed to be probation. As part of the
plea agreement, Jones said he would recommend 24 months probation
for the felony charge. The misdemeanor charge will likely result
in payment of a fine, lab fees and court costs.
In exchange for Long’s pleas, Jones agreed to dismiss all
other charges.
Also as part of the agreement, Long’s attorney, Christopher
Williams, said, “He will be ordered to pay restitution in
the amount of $3,425.85.”
Jones said the amount of agreed restitution was about 10 percent
of that alleged to be owed in all the worthless check charges.
Williams told the court the plea agreement also included other conditions.
“[Jones] has other matters that he has not prosecuted and
he has agreed not to prosecute those matters,” Williams said.
Jones told Fromme the other matters “involved some land use
violations, for failing to get a permit for two Dogstock events
he held. Also there was some additional bad checks that came to
us after the deadline we imposed and we agreed not to prosecute
those as well.”
Jones told the newspaper he would request that conditions of Long’s
probation include Long’s agreement not to hold any future
Dogstock concerts or charity events in Osage County.
Concluding the hearing, Fromme ordered Long to meet with a court
services officer to begin a presentence investigation. |
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