Balchunas Found Not Guilty On All Charges By Jury

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Courthouse

After 20 minutes of deliberation, the jury in the Starke Circuit Court trial against Alan Balchunas of Monterey reached a verdict of not guilty of Domestic Battery and Strangulation. Balchunas was accused of choking and beating his ex-wife, Pamela Balchunas, following an argument that led to a physical altercation.

During the course of the trial, Pamela testified that Balchunas had put her into a headlock and beat the left side of her face and head. She said he then put his hands around her throat and started to choke her, so she reached for a baseball bat to fend him off. After hitting him twice in the head, Balchunas stumbled back and she said she then left the home.

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Three Plead Not Guilty to Charges in Starke Circuit Court

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall

Several offenders appeared for initial hearings before Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall Wednesday afternoon.

William Lamphier pleaded not guilty to charges of Burglary as a Class C Felony and Receiving Stolen Property as a Class D Felony. Lamphier, of Walkerton, was arrested on Nov. 27 after he allegedly broke into a home in North Liberty and stole tools, a gas can, a weedeater and other items.

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Balchunas Trial Continues Today in Starke Circuit Court

Posted on Author WKVI

Alan Balchunas of Monterey is on trial this week facing charges of Domestic Battery and Strangulation. He allegedly battered and strangled his ex-wife Pamela Balchunas at her home in Monterey.

Pamela Balchunas testified yesterday that she and Alan Balchunas had an argument about rounding up extension cords to run from the house to her sister’s home that had electricity. The area had been suffering from a power outage after a severe storm and while her sister had power, she did not. She stated that she had asked Balchunas for help and he refused. An argument ensued and he reportedly barged into the home, put her into a headlock and beat the left side of her face and head. The struggle started in the kitchen and continued into the living room. She testified that he then put his hands around her throat and started to choke her. She said she couldn’t breathe and her eyesight was failing, but she knew the baseball bat was by the front door she reached for the bat and hit him in the head with it. His grip reportedly got tighter and she hit him again. The second blow caused him to stumble back into a chair and started bleeding. She then left the residence and went to her mother’s house.

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Starke County Trial Set For Man Accused of Domestic Battery, Strangulation

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Courthouse

A trial is set in the Starke Circuit Court this morning at 9 a.m. for a man accused of battering his ex-wife in front of their two children, ages six and seven. Alan Balchunas was arrested on July 1 on charges of Domestic Battery, Strangulation, Battery, and Possession of Marijuana after he allegedly choked and shoved his ex-wife during an altercation concerning the conditions of their home.

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Adoptions Are Historic Emotional Moments in Starke Circuit Court

Posted on Author WKVI
The Earnest family went through the adoption hearing before the public and the media on Friday.

It was an emotional day in the Starke Circuit Court yesterday as Judge Kim Hall finalized four adoptions in an historical moment before the public and the media. For the first time in the history of the Starke County Courthouse, Chief Justice Brent Dickson signed a rare order authorizing the adoption proceedings to not only be open to the public, but also to be televised and recorded by the media. Only three counties in Indiana were given this order.

In honor of National Adoption Awareness Month and the increasing need for adoptive families, the four adoption hearings were held before a packed courtroom with several guest speakers, including Rhonda Adcock, the director of Starke County CASA, who spoke about how important adoption is.

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Four Adoptions To Take Place in Circuit Court Today Open To Public

Posted on Author WKVI

Today is a special day for four families in Starke County as Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall will be finalizing adoptions for those families.

A ceremony will begin at 1 p.m. CT today when the public is invited to listen to several speakers concerning adoptions. At 1:30 p.m., the adoption hearings will begin. WKVI will be there to witness the adoptions as the Indiana Supreme Court has allowed the proceedings to be covered by the media when they are usually closed to the public.

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Starke County Woman Pleads Not Guilty to Trafficking Charges

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Courthouse

The initial hearing for a woman accused of trying to smuggle contraband into the Starke County Jail was held last week in the Starke Circuit Court.

Lindsey Dennis pleaded not guilty to a charge of Attempting Trafficking With an Inmate as a Class C felony and denied allegations that she had helped to hide a controlled substance inside a deodorant container to smuggle into the jail.

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Stonebraker Found Not Guilty of Rape, Domestic Battery

Posted on Author WKVI
Christopher Stonebraker

The trial for Christopher Stonebraker, a Winamac man accused of raping and battering his ex-wife, came to a close Friday in the Starke Circuit Court when the jury returned with a verdict of not guilty on both counts. Deliberation lasted roughly three hours and the verdict was returned at 7 p.m. The defense started their case Friday and called two witnesses to the stand before final arguments were heard.

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Stonebraker Found Not Guilty of Rape, Domestic Battery

Posted on Author WKVI
Christopher Stonebraker

The trial for Christopher Stonebraker, a Winamac man accused of raping and battering his ex-wife, came to a close Friday in the Starke Circuit Court when the jury returned with a verdict of not guilty on both counts. Deliberation lasted roughly three hours and the verdict was returned at 7 p.m. The defense started their case Friday and called two witnesses to the stand before final arguments were heard.

On Thursday, the state called nine witnesses to the stand, including two detectives, two forensic investigators from the Indiana State Police, the nurse who performed the rape exam on the victim, Pulaski County Sheriff Michael Gayer, North Judson Town Marshal Doug Vessely, and Starke County dispatcher Dawn Bau, as well as the victim and a close friend.

The trial began on Wednesday in the Starke Circuit Court after a six-hour jury selection process. Stonebraker faces charges of Rape as a Class B felony and D-felony charges of Domestic Battery following his arrest in November, when police allege he raped his ex-wife and pushed her head into a wall, causing her tooth to chip. The probable cause affidavit stated that he also scratched her back in the presence of two children.

Stonebraker was found not guilty of both charges.

Stonebraker Trial To Continue Today, Witnesses Expected to Be Called

Posted on Author WKVI
Christopher Stonebraker

After a lengthy jury selection process, the trial for a Winamac man accused of raping his ex-wife began in the Starke Circuit Court yesterday. Christopher Stonebraker faces charges of Rape as a Class B felony and Domestic Battery as a Class D felony following his arrest in November.

The jury selection process ran from 9 a.m. to around 3 p.m., when the jury was finally seated. The assembled jury then heard their instructions for the case and opening statements were heard from both the defense and the state before the day came to a close.

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Trial For Man Accused of Rape To Begin Today

Posted on Author WKVI
Christopher Stonebraker

Since being continued in late July, the jury trial in the case of Christopher Stonebraker has been set for this morning at 9 a.m. Stonebraker is charged with Rape as a Class B felony and Domestic Battery as a Class D felony following his arrest late last year.

Stonebraker was arrested on Nov. 28, 2011, and it is alleged that he raped his ex-wife and pushed her head into a wall, causing her tooth to chip. The probable cause affidavit stated that he also scratched her back in the presence of two children. Stonebraker was arrested by an officer from the Indiana State Police and taken to the Starke County Jail.

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Knox Man Sentenced To 45 Months in DOC For Receiving Stolen Property

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Courthouse

Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall sentenced William Baugh, 21 of Knox, last week after he pleaded guilty to a charge of Receiving Stolen Property in a plea agreement with the state.

Baugh testified that his ex-girlfriend gave him some zippo lighters to pawn at the pawn shop in Knox. Baugh also said that his ex-girlfriend had gotten them from her grandmother and it was okay for him to pawn them. According to more testimony, it was learned that the lighters were not the woman’s grandmother’s but her stepfather’s. The victim made a statement in court that the items were taken without his consent and was extremely upset that the items were stolen and pawned. He asked the pawn shop to hold those items because they were stolen and he called the police to make a report. The victim told Judge Hall that the items were sold anyway. He indicated that the lighters were a collection of his mother’s and there were over 200 of them in the collection worth $1,500. There were also some Star Wars memorabilia items that were pawned.

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Sentences Handed Down in Starke Circuit Court

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Courthouse

Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall presided over several plea and sentencing hearings Thursday afternoon.

James Toney appeared for his hearing. He was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance as a Class D Felony and had been incarcerated in the Starke County Jail since his arrest six months ago. He was charged after police found him in possession of one Vicadin pill in his pocket.

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Two Sentenced in Starke Circuit Court in Battery Case

Posted on Author WKVI

Two teenagers were sentenced in Starke Circuit Court yesterday for their involvement in a battery incident in May that left a man unconscious at times.

Daily James Potter and Jamal Green pleaded guilty to a charge of Theft in an incident where Potter and Green, plus two adult suspects John Potter and Brenan Sanchez, allegedly beat and kicked a Monterey man. Daily James Potter and Jamal Green stated in court that they were not involved in the battery but rather the theft of $400 in cash, a knife and prescription medication. They reached into the victim’s pockets, after he was on the ground after being battered, and took the money and a weekly pill container that contained several prescription medications.

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Samuel Bradley Sentenced to 14 Years in Department of Corrections

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Courthouse

Samuel Bradley received his sentence in the Starke Circuit Court earlier this month on a charge of Attempted Criminal Deviate Conduct as a Class B felony.

Bradley was charged with Attempted Criminal Deviate Conduct after he blocked a cell to prevent the victim, Todd Dalton, from leaving the cell while Adam Makowski and Buddy Blankenship assaulted him. According to the Starke County Sheriff’s Department’s case report, video tapes revealed that Makowski, Blankenship, and Bradley were involved in an assault against Dalton. The tapes showed that the trio had forced Dalton into the F-Block, where they tried to pull down his pants and assaulted him. Dalton said the three were trying to rape him because he refused to fight back during a prior altercation.

Bradley was found guilty in September, and was sentenced this month to 14 years in the Department of Corrections with none of that sentence suspended. Bradley may petition the court to allow him to serve the last two years of the sentence on home detention if he is accepted, but the state can object to that request.

Two Plead Guilty to D Felonies in Starke Circuit Court

Posted on Author WKVI
Starke County Courthouse

Two individuals plead guilty to the charges against them as part of plea agreements in the Starke Circuit Court.

Joshua Barlow, 25 of Knox, pleaded guilty to an enhanced charge of Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated with a Previous Conviction as a Class D felony. He admitted that on March 17 he had driven his vehicle while over the legal limit of 0.08 percent blood-alcohol concentration after he had been previous arrested and convicted on the same charge within five years.

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