IRONTON, Ky. -- A former Hanging Rock police officer, who admitted to collecting traffic fines from out-of-town motorists and then pocketing the cash, was sentenced Tuesday to three years in prison for evidence-tampering.
Lawrence County Common Pleas Court Judge Charles "Chuck" Cooper also sentenced Ronald E. Blanton, 28, of Franklin Furnace, to four years' probation for theft in office, according to the Lawrence County Prosecutor's Office.
Earlier this month, Blanton pleaded no contest to both charges. Under the law, a no-contest plea has the same effect as a guilty plea. In so doing, Blanton avoided a jury trial, which was to have begun last week.
Blanton and a fellow officer, Thomas Trent, 23, of Portsmouth, both were arrested in May as a result of an investigation by local, state and federal authorities.
The probe stemmed from a complaint filed by a woman from Baltimore, Ohio, who was ticketed for speeding while driving through Hanging Rock in November of last year.
According to the Lawrence County Sheriff's Department, Blanton and Trent issued the woman a citation and told her she could pay them her fine in cash, which she did. When she returned home, though, she contacted her local police department about the incident.
The Baltimore police then contacted Lawrence County Sheriff Jeff Lawless, who, in turn contacted investigators with the Lawrence County Prosecutor's Office, the FBI and the Bureau of Criminal Investigation & Identification.
The investigation revealed it was common practice for Hanging Rock police officers to collect traffic fines along the roadside during traffic stops. The practice was subsequently changed, according to Lawless.
Investigators also learned the money the Baltimore woman gave the officers was never turned in to the Hanging Rock Village Clerk.
The investigation also revealed the two officers targeted out-of-town travelers and that there had been at least 10 other similar incidents.
Trent is also charged with evidence-tampering and theft in office. His case is still pending.
Copyright 2011 - The Daily Independent, Ashland, Ky.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
