CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Drug Team convicted four defendants this week in Mecklenburg County Superior Court. The defendants faced charges ranging from possession of drug paraphernalia to attempted trafficking in heroin. The proceedings were held before The Honorable Hugh B. Lewis and The Honorable Robert T. Sumner, Superior Court Judges.
Belinda Hawkins, 48, was tried for 1) possession with intent to sell or deliver marijuana, 2) possession of cocaine and 3) possession of drug paraphernalia. The jury returned a verdict of guilty on the charge of possession with intent to sell or deliver marijuana and found Hawkins not guilty on the remaining charges. Judge Lewis sentenced Hawkins to 6-8 months in prison; that sentence was suspended pending her successful completion of 30 months of supervised probation. As a condition of her probation, Hawkins must serve 45 days in the Mecklenburg County jail. Charlotte-Mecklenburg police received complaints that Hawkins was selling drugs from her hotel room on South Tryon Street in Charlotte. When officers went to the hotel in April 2011, Hawkins gave consent for them to search the room that she shared with others. Officers found 32 bags of marijuana, containing a total of more than 14 grams of marijuana. At the time of the offense, Hawkins was on probation for a conviction of possession with intent to sell or deliver cocaine within 1,000 feet of a school.
Juan Briscoe, 24, was tried for 1) sale of cocaine and 2) possession with intent to sell or
deliver cocaine. Judge Sumner declared a mistrial when the jury was unable to reach a
unanimous verdict. The case will be scheduled for re-trial at a later date.
Three defendants pled guilty when their cases were called for trial:
Allejandro Garcia Garcia, 26, pled guilty to attempted trafficking in heroin. He was sentenced to 15-27 months in prison.
Paul Gordon, 31, pled guilty to 1) possession with intent to sell or deliver cocaine and 2) sale of cocaine. He was sentenced to 12-24 months in prison; that sentence was suspended pending his successful completion of 24 months of supervised probation. As a condition of his probation, Gordon must serve 90 days in the Mecklenburg County jail.
Michael Hargrove, 29, pled guilty to possession of drug paraphernalia. He was sentenced to 45 days in the Mecklenburg County jail; that sentence was suspended pending his successful completion of 12 months of unsupervised probation.
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