A Greenwood man was sentenced to 12 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to seven felonies that were committed over a four-month period last year.
James Anthony Mills Jr., pleaded guilty to seven felony charges, including possession of methamphetamine and possession of a handgun by a convicted felon. He was sentenced on all three cases at the same time by Peter Nugent, Johnson Superior Court 2 judge.
All of the charges stem from three separate incidents occurring between February and May of 2018.
On May 26, Mills was arrested on charges of carrying an unlawful handgun, theft, driving while suspended, dealing in methamphetamine, possession of cocaine or narcotic and failure to appear after police stopped his truck when a Franklin police officer saw him driving on U.S. 31 without wearing his seat belt, according to a police report.
He was already out of jail on bond due to felony charges filed earlier in 2018 of possession of methamphetamine, possession of a handgun by a felon and possession of marijuana. He had missed a court appearance related to those charges and was wanted on a warrant for failure to appear, court records show.
Police stopped his truck at the intersection with Jefferson Street. He had pain medication in his pants pocket, the report said. A police dog was called to help search his truck, and officers found 50 grams of methamphetamine and .35 pounds of marijuana, the report said.
Police also found a handgun in the truck that had been reported stolen in Columbus, the report said.
Earlier this month he pleaded guilty and was sentenced on all of the charges at once, acting prosecutor Joe Villanueva said.
For the incidents on Feb. 21, he plead guilty to possession of methamphetamine, a Level 4 felony, and received six years in prison and possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, a Level 5 felony, where he received a three-year sentence. Those counts run concurrent to each other, which means they are served at the same time. Four years were suspended to probation, with one year being active probation, Villanueva said. Mills will serve two years in prison for those counts.
He was sentenced to five years of prison for crimes that occurred May 17. He pleaded guilty to possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and received three years, resisting law enforcement with a vehicle, a Level 6 felony, where he received one year and possession of methamphetamine, where he received nine years. All those counts run concurrent to each other, meaning he will serve five years in prison, with four years suspended, with one year active probation, Villanueva said.
Mills will spend five years in prison for the crimes that occurred May 26. He received another three-year sentence for possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and a nine year sentence for another charge of possession of methamphetamine. All counts will run concurrent to each other, so for those charges, five years will be spent in prison and four years were suspended to probation, Villanueva said.
The sentences for all the charges ran consecutive to each other, making his final sentence 24 years total. Of that 24, 12 years will be spent in prison and 12 years suspended to probation. Of those 12 suspended years, five will be served on active probation. After the five years of active probation, he will not be monitored, but would have his probation revoked if he committed another crime, he said.
Mills faced a total of 44 years before his sentencing. The prosecutor’s office argued for longer time because of the amount of drugs found, possession of a handgun multiple times and a previous criminal record, Villanueva said.
Mills will also be allowed to be screened for the Recovery While Incarcerated program. The program is designed to treat substance addictions and is often used by courts when deciding to modify sentences, he said.
