A Bismarck man was sentenced to six years in prison while his wife was given a suspended sentence after they both pleaded guilty Monday to felony charges stemming from a traffic stop earlier this year.
Joseph Randolph Carver, 46, pleaded guilty to possession of meth with purpose to deliver and theft by receiving of a firearm and was sentenced to six years in prison while four additional felony counts of possession of a controlled substance with purpose to deliver, involving hydromorphone, carisoprodol, alprazolam and tramadol and a felony charge of simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms were withdrawn.
Vanessa Lue Carver, 45, pleaded guilty to felony counts of possession of meth with purpose to deliver and possession of drug paraphernalia and was sentenced to six years in prison, with the entire sentence suspended, fined $1,000 and ordered to pay $545 in court costs. Court costs were expunged for Joseph Carver for time served.
According to the probable cause affidavit, on Feb. 2, 2017, shortly before 9 a.m., Garland County sheriff's Cpl. Felix Hunter was on patrol in the area of Westinghouse Drive and Malvern Avenue when he saw a small gray Isuzu pickup that turned onto Westinghouse without signaling. He checked the license plate as the pickup turned onto Joyce Street and determined it was a fictitious tag returning to a different vehicle.
He made a traffic stop in the 400 block of Joyce and noted before the pickup stopped the white male passenger, later identified as Joseph Carver, could be seen leaning over "messing with things" under his seat and the driver's side seat.
Hunter radioed Deputy Richard Huffman and his K-9 partner, Aton, for backup and made contact with the driver, identified as Vanessa Carver, and Joseph Carver, who were both asked to get out. At that point, Hunter spotted a black pistol on the driver's side floorboard.
Joseph Carver made a spontaneous statement the pistol was his and a computer check showed it had been reported stolen out of Lonoke County.
While searching him, Huffman reportedly located 13 hydrocodone pills, about 1 gram, in a glass bottle, two carisoprodol pills in a plastic container, a small baggie of marijuana, 2 grams, and several alprazolam pills.
While he was running Aton around the pickup, Vanessa Carver handed Huffman two bags of meth stating Joseph Carver had given them to her and told her to hide them after they saw Hunter's unit. One bag contained 8 grams and the other 11.3 grams.
In searching the vehicle, Huffman also found a black and silver box under the passenger seat that contained three sets of scales, several baggies similar to ones used for meth, another alprazolam pill, and two spoons with meth residue.
Agents with the 18th Judicial District East Drug Task Force were notified and responded to the scene.
Local on 11/01/2017