BEDFORD – Lawrence Superior Court I Judge John M. Plummer III sentenced a Mitchell man to eight years in the Indiana Department of Correction after the man violated the terms of his probation, problem-solving court, and no contact order.
Richard Cota, 52, pleaded guilty to aggravated battery, a Level 3 felony, as a part of a negotiated plea agreement with the State of Indiana. The plea agreement, negotiated by a Lawrence County Deputy Prosecutor in 2022, outlined that Cota would execute 11 years in the Indiana Department of Corrections with time served executed and the remainder suspended to 10 years of supervised probation. Cota was accepted into the Lawrence County Problem-Solving Court to gain the tools and knowledge to correct the behaviors that keep individuals from living as productive members of the Lawrence County community.
After many probation violations, violations of a no-contract order, and violations of the Problem-Solving Court rules resulting in Judge Plummer III sentenced Cota to serve the remaining time of his sentence in the Indiana Department of Corrections.
Chief Deputy Prosecutor Joshua K. Scherschel said, “This office takes Domestic Violence crimes seriously. This Defendant was given an opportunity through the Lawrence County Domestic Violence Problem-Solving Court. When a defendant violates the terms of a Problem-Solving court, this is a natural consequence of that choice.”
