A habitual offender was sentenced to five years in prison Tuesday after pleading guilty in Garland County Circuit Court to multiple felony charges stemming from incidents last year and earlier this year.
Jennifer Rowlett, 36, of Royal, pleaded guilty to breaking or entering, possession of a firearm by certain persons and felony failure to appear and was sentenced to five years on each count, to run concurrently, and ordered to pay $510 in court costs.
She was previously convicted Oct. 21, 2013, of possession of a controlled substance and third-degree escape and sentenced to three years in prison, but was later paroled.
According to affidavits, on Nov. 20, 2016, shortly after 11 p.m., a security guard at the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences, and the Arts saw a white Jeep Cherokee in the school's parking lot and spoke to the occupant, identified as Rowlett, who quickly moved from the passenger seat to the driver's seat.
Rowlett claimed she didn't know it was a private lot, asked for the quickest route out of the lot and left. The guard then located a man hiding inside a 2014 Nissan Versa two spaces over which was determined to have been broken into.
Several phone cords, auxiliary cables and a digital watch were found in the man's possession which were later determined to belong to the Versa owner who told Hot Springs police she didn't know the man and he didn't have permission to be in her car. The man was charged with breaking or entering.
A short time later, police stopped the Jeep Cherokee on Cedar Street and Rowlett was also charged with breaking or entering, punishable by up to six years in prison, and later released on $2,500 bond.
On Jan. 27, 2017, shortly after 1 a.m., Garland County sheriff's Deputy Andrew Goodman saw a Dodge Dakota at the car wash at Royal Pit Stop, 6052 Albert Pike, that matched the description of one reportedly driving recklessly earlier.
He spoke to the driver, identified as Rowlett, who told him she had vomited in the vehicle and was cleaning it out. Asked if there was anything in the vehicle he needed to know about, she admitted there was a loaded semi-automatic handgun wrapped in a towel on the dash. Goodman located the gun and after determining Rowlett was a convicted felon he took her into custody.
She was later released on $2,500 bond, but after she failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing on Feb. 7, 2017, a warrant was issued for her arrest. She was taken into custody again on March 7 and had remained in custody since then.
Local on 09/14/2017