Suspended sentence in 3-year old drug case

Staff Reports

A Carson City woman was sentenced to a suspended 12-30 month prison term for unlawful use of a controlled substance on Monday, more than three years after she was arrested.

District Judge Michael Gibbons said Crystal Moreno, 24, will have to serve a six-month jail sentence as part of her probation, but that with all the time she spent in jail over the years, that would add up to about 41 days.

Moreno was arrested May 13, 2004, after her daughter was stillborn and she tested positive for methamphetamine and marijuana.

She pleaded guilty to the felony and her sentencing was deferred while she attended Western Nevada Regional Drug Court.

"She went 18 months and did very well," said her attorney Jennifer Yturbide. "She's been cooperative and honest about what she's done."

Yturbide argued against making Moreno spend a year in jail.

"This has gone on for such a long time, imposing a year would be too much," Yturbide said.

Gibbons said he has ruled in the past that crimes carrying mandatory probation aren't affected by someone's performance in drug court. He suspended Moreno's sentence for two years

-- A former computer network administrator who co-hosted a Reno radio program said it didn't take long after he started using heroin for his life to spiral out of control.

Stefan Julian Putnam, 47, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the controlled substances act on Monday.

Putnam acted as wheelman for accused heroin dealer Roland Roth, who made three deliveries in Douglas County. Putnam said he was paid $50 for each trip and that he knew Roth was delivering heroin.

Prosecutor Tom Gregory said Roth was hospitalized after the pair's May 24 arrest. Roth escaped the medical facility.

Putnam said he met Roth a year ago when he was looking for a new source of vicodin after his doctor cut him off. Roth and others convinced Putnam to try heroin for the pain.

"I knew I had a bad problem," Putnam said. "Last November or December my family intervened and I was off for a couple of weeks, but the pull was too great. Lying, cheating, stealing, it doesn't make any difference. You do whatever you have to, to get it. Without some help, I know I would go back to it."

Gibbons granted Putnam's diversion to drug court, which allows offenders to undergo a regiment of regular drug testing and court appearances in exchange for reducing or even vacating charges against them.