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Rideshare driver feared for his safety
While transporting a client in the back seat of his car, a rideshare driver allegedly saw the passenger pull out a handgun from a backpack as the two were traveling on Interstate 180 in the city about 5:20 p.m. on March 3.
The passenger, Jacob Bauer, told the driver he had just purchased a handgun from a local firearms business. Looking toward the back seat, the driver saw Bauer pointing the gun at his (the driver's) head, city Patrolman Andrew Stevens said in an affidavit.
"Although no threats were made, this caused the driver to fear for his safety and life as the barrel of the handgun was pointed at his head. He did not know if the gun was loaded or not," Stevens said.
The driver told the officer that Bauer was "holding the handgun with both hands in a shooter-style grip," court records stated. During the ride, Bauer, 21, of 2030 Zuni Lane, volunteered that he "sells 'weed' as his primary and only income and (he) will carry the firearm for safety while doing so. The driver stated that Bauer did not smell like marijuana while he was in the vehicle," the officer said.
Bauer was then dropped off at his home without incident.
It turned out that Bauer, who was arrested and jailed last Wednesday morning on drug charges along with two other people in Old Lycoming Township, doesn't have a permit to carry a firearm legally, Stevens said.
Bauer, Demetria Tennison, 20, of Palmyra, and Jordan Artley, 20, of 2405 W. Fourth St., were taken into custody at 2307 1/2 Lycoming Creek Road after several pounds of marijuana were found inside the Lycoming Creek Road property when police went there with a warrant for Artley's arrest out of Lackawana County.
One day after being jailed on the drug charges, Bauer was brought before District Judge William Solomon and arraigned on charges filed by Stevens, which included carrying a firearm without a license, recklessly endangering, disorderly conduct, making unsworn falsification to authorities and putting down false information on a formal document when purchasing a firearm. He was recommitted in lieu of an additional $50,000 bail.
Four charged with DUI-related offenses
It was motorist Kevin Lee Banks' failure to use a turn signal when he made a turn in South Williamsport that caught the attention of a state trooper, who stopped his pickup truck in the 2000 block of Riverside Drive about 11 p.m. on Nov. 27.
Banks, 33, of 3139 Daughertys Run Road, Linden, showed "a high probability that he was under the influence" when he went through a series of field sobriety tests that the trooper asked him to perform because there was a strong odor of alcohol coming from his vehicle.
Charged with DUI and careless driving, Banks had a blood-alcohol concentration level of .10, police said. He is free on $5,000 bail.
Driving a Chevrolet Malibu, Danille Trimble, 31, 312 Broad St., apartment 1, was stopped by a state trooper at Riverside Drive and Linden Street in South Williamsport about 3:10 a.m. on Aug. 15 because the license plate on her car had been suspended due to the insurance on the vehicle was canceled.
A strong scent of alcohol was coming from the woman, a trooper said in an affidavit. Trimble admitted that she had just come from a bar in the city, where she drank one beer and a mixed drink, police said. It turned out that she had a blood-alcohol concentration level of .20 at the time, police said.
Charged with DUI and careless driving, Trimble is free on $10,000 bail.
Another Montoursville motorist, Melinda Alexander, 48, of 358 Broad St., apartment 1, had a blood-alcohol concentration level of .24 when she crashed her car in the 6100 block of Northway Road in Eldred Township about 7:15 p.m. on Nov. 17.
Alexander's eyes were glassy, bloodshot and watery, police said, adding that she admitted to having "quite a bit " to drink. She too is free on $10,000 bail following her arraignment on charges of DUI, careless driving and reckless driving.
Driver Sandra Butters, 54, of 508 Cabbage Hollow Road, Proctor, was stopped by a state trooper on Route 87 in Fairfield Township while she was on her way home from a class reunion about 10:45 p.m. on July 24, court records state. She was stopped because her 2015 Toyota 4Runner was weaving inside a lane, police said.
Butters admitted to having two glasses of champagne at the reunion, police said, adding that her blood-alcohol concentration level was .09. She had a minor in the vehicle at the time, police said. Charged with DUI, endangering welfare of a child and careless driving, she is free on $5,000 bail.
Shoplifting charge lodged against man
Paul McRae, 56, of 407 Trinity Place, has been charged by Montoursville police with misdemeanor shoplifting after he was caught allegedly attempting to leave Walmart, 1015 N. Loyalsock Ave., with $345 worth of merchandise on Dec. 1. He is free on $5,000 bail. This was his second shoplifting arrest.
Five charged with drug offenses in separate cases
A 38-year-old Muncy area man faces theft and drug charges for allegedly taking two hydrocodone pills that were actually prescribed to his roommate, state police said.
Jason Cowher, of 528 Ruben Kehrer Road, lot 138, was taken into custody on a bench warrant at his home about 11 p.m. on Dec. 2. At the time, he had in his possession his roommate's pills, police said.
Charged with theft, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, Cowher is free on $5,000 bail.
Jessie Hopper, 34, of Watsontown, has been charged by Hughesville police with possession of marijuana and possession on South Main Street in Picture Rocks on Jan. 9. She waived her preliminary hearing and is free on bail.
Travis Mosteller, 23, of 2330 W. Fourth St., has been charged by state police with possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia in the 300 block of Broad Street in Montoursville on Nov. 28. He is free on $5,000 bail.
Joseph Clements, 39, of 421 Wylie St., Jersey Shore, has been charged by state police with possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia at Market Street and Southern Avenue in South Williamsport on Sept. 29. He is free on bail.
A bench warrant was expected to be filed for Aaron Brew, 22, of Philadelphia, after he failed to appear for his preliminary hearing last week on a state police charge of possession of marijuana stemming from an incident on Sheridan Street in Loyalsock Township last March 26.