Russell Duane South
A man facing felony robbery and vehicle theft charges invoked his right to a preliminary hearing within 15 days on Tuesday.
Russell Duane South, 37, appeared in Tahoe Township Justice Court with attorney Max Stovall. He is scheduled to appear again on March 28.
South declined an offer to enter a guilty plea on the vehicle theft charge and said he was seeking a dismissal of the charges.
A preliminary hearing determines whether there is slight or marginal evidence a crime was committed, and that the accused could have committed it.
South is being held in lieu of $50,000 bail bondable.
During a bail hearing on Monday, prosecutors argued he had an extensive criminal history, including three felony convictions.
Tahoe Township Justice of the Peace Michael Johnson denied an effort by the state to increase South’s bail to $100,000.
South reportedly failed to appear on the charges filed March 8, 2020.
He was arrested on a warrant in Los Angeles on Jan. 12. There is also a hold out of Sparks.
• A man who was sentenced in mid-January after admitting to violating a diversion program by being in possession of drugs is in custody on a probation violation.
Michael Buck, 56, was arrested by Parole & Probation during a Feb. 28 home visit at his Las Vegas home. Buck reportedly admitted to probation officers that he’d taken Ecstasy. He’s previously failed to report for a testing and when he did he tested positive for methamphetamine and methamphetamine, according to a March 17 report.
Buck was sentenced to a suspended 12-36 months on Jan. 13 after he failed his diversion program by having methamphetamine. While it was found in his home, he denied it was his.
Buck was arrested in Stateline with methamphetamine on Oct. 28, 2023, the year after his 2022 parole hearing on a felony charge of possession of a financial forgery lab that earned him a 4-10 year prison term.