Man gets prison in vehicle theft

An Oregon man, who claimed he found the keys to the car he stole after he mistakenly put on someone else’s pants, was sentenced to 12-30 months in prison.

Daniel Louis Hutchens Jr., 39, appeared in Douglas County District Court on Tuesday with attorney Brian Filter.

Filter said that Hutchens believed he was dying and that he had to reach his brother in Arizona, so he started hitchhiking from Portland.

He checked into a shelter in Clackamas, where he got into a conflict and was ejected and in his hurry to leave, he grabbed someone else’s pants with the keys to a 1995 Saturn in the pocket, Filter said.

Prosecutor Patrick Ferguson pointed out that the victim of the theft was living at a shelter.

“There’s no making it right for the victim who lost what is probably his most valuable possession,” Ferguson said.

Hutchens was actually on parole when he was arrested, which weighed in the judge’s sentencing decision.

• A California man, who failed to appear for sentencing in March, was ordered to spend his entire 90-day probation in jail on Tuesday.

Walter Ray Jones Jr., 44, of Oakland admitted to using someone else’s drivers license in an effort to avoid a traffic warrant on Sept. 11, 2020.

Ferguson described committing a felony to avoid a traffic ticket “turning a molehill into a mountain.”

Jones received a suspended 19-60-month sentence that was ordered to end after he completes his jail term.

“If you’d come in and pay your traffic ticket, you wouldn’t be here,” District Judge Tod Young said.

• A California woman received a suspended 19-48-month prison sentence after she admitted to trying to alter a check and cash it.

Shannon Gwen Perry, 29, appeared in Douglas County District Court on Monday.

According to court documents, she tried to cash a $2,374 check at a Stateline casino, which didn’t fall for the scam.

Perry’s probation was set to expire after 18 months.

• A man who had oxycodone without a prescription was granted diversion on Monday after admitting to possession of a controlled substance.

Robert Sean Underwood, 30, appeared in Douglas County District Court on Monday.

He said he has been an addict since he was 23 after being injured in a motorcycle accident.

Under the deferred sentence, Underwood must attend Western Nevada Regional Drug Court.

• A Californian, who grabbed a woman by the crotch while she was walking along Highway 50, admitted Tuesday to open and gross misdemeanor and battering a deputy.

Jeremy Joseph Stanchfield, 40, faces up to 364 days in jail on each count.

In order to qualify for probation, Stanchfield must be found not to be at a risk of reoffending in a psychosexual evaluation. He will also have to register as a sex offender.

According to court documents, Stanchfield was arrested on May 16.

He also admitted to spitting on the arresting deputy. He is scheduled for sentencing on Nov. 30.