NKyTribune staff report
The Kenton Commonwealth Attorney’s office sent a message last week that people looking to use Northern Kentucky as a drug route can expect stiff punishment if caught.
Hailey Turner of Nicholasville was found guilty of Importing Heroin and Trafficking in a Controlled Substance, More Than 2 Grams of Heroin.
According to court testimony, Turner purchased the drugs in Cincinnati in August of last year and was headed home when she stopped at a gas station on Buttermilk Pike. Responding to a call of suspicious activity, Erlanger Police officers investigated and located the heroin in Turner’s handbag.
The Commonwealth Attorney’s office states Turner was planning to take the drugs back to Nicholasville, where she could sell them for a hefty profit.
The jury deliberated less than an hour before finding Turner guilty on both counts.
During the sentencing phase, Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Maria Schletker urged the jury to send a message that the use of Kenton County as a pass-through for drug trafficking would not be tolerated.
The jury obliged, recommending a sentence of six years to serve on each count, running consecutively, for a total of 12 years to serve. Turner must serve at least 50 percent of her sentence before being eligible for parole
The Kenton Commonwealth Attorney’s Office released the following statement regarding the events that led to Turner’s conviction:
On August 11, 2015, Hailey Turner traveled from Nicholasville, Kentucky, to Cincinnati where she purchased over six grams of Heroin.
Turner then returned to Kentucky, bringing those six grams of Heroin into Kenton County. Turner was en route back to Nicholasville where she could sell it for more than double the price she paid in Ohio.
As Turner traveled Interstate 75, the car in which she was a passenger stopped at Sunoco Gas Station on Buttermilk Pike. Erlanger Police were called to the gas station for a report of suspicious activity.
Upon arrival, Officers Josh Nezi and Joe Scroggins approached the vehicle where Turner was seated. During their investigation, officers located 6.527 grams of Heroin and a digital scale in Turner’s handbag.
Officers questioned Turner, who admitted the substance was Heroin and it was purchased from Cincinnati earlier that night. Turner was arrested and originally charged with Possession of Heroin.
On September 25, 2015, the Kenton County Grand Jury returned indictments against Turner for Importing Heroin and Trafficking in a Controlled Substance, More Than 2 Grams of Heroin, rather than simple Possession.
The case was called for trial before Kenton Circuit Judge Kathleen Lape on June 28, 2016.
Turner showed up almost 30 minutes late for trial, prompting Judge Lape to revoke her bond meaning she would be kept in jail while the court was in recess.
Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorneys Maria Schletker and Casey Burns presented evidence on behalf of the Commonwealth during the two day trial.
The Commonwealth’s witnesses included Officer Nezi and Director Christopher Conners of the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force, an expert in the field of narcotics trafficking. Nezi testified about the facts resulting in Turner’s arrest.
Conners testified about quantities heroin is commonly consumed in as well as the value of the quantities. Conners also said six grams was such a large amount of Heroin that it shows Turner intended to traffic in the drug because no one person could consume that much.
The jury deliberated less than an hour before finding Turner guilty on both counts: Importing Heroin and Trafficking in a Controlled Substance, More Than 2 Grams of Heroin.
During the sentencing phase of the trial, Schletker urged the jury to send a message to the community that drug dealers will not be tolerated in Kenton County. Schletker also noted there is already too much heroin in Northern Kentucky without people like Turner bringing even more into the state.
The jury recommended a sentence of six years to serve on each count, running consecutively for a total of 12 years to serve.
Turner must serve at least 50 percent of her sentence before being eligible for parole thanks to legislation passed in 2016 by the Kentucky General Assembly which increased the parole eligibility from the former 20 percent minimum.