Rebecca Martin, who has faced a number of charges related to her involvement in the drug business, is now headed to a Community Corrections Center after violating her probation. Martin is to undergo a program designed to help people deal with addictions.
Martin was found guilty of probation violations and sent to the CCC during a session of Baxter County Circuit Court Thursday.
In late April, the 53-year-old Martin entered a guilty plea to three active drug-related criminal cases and was given 20 years probation.
In mid-June, Martin was charged with violating her probation by testing positive for the use of methamphetamine for the third time in just over a month. She was also accused of failing to report for various appointments with staff from Arkansas Community Correction.
Martin was also a no-show in early June to undergo a substance abuse assessment.
Prior to her being put on the lengthy period of probation, 14th Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney David Ethredge told the court a review had been conducted of the evidence the state could present at trial — as well as the ways and means the evidence had been gathered. The prosecutor told Judge John Putman the review indicated there could be problems in proving many of the charges against Martin at trial.
In fact, prosecutors had already been hampered in bringing some of Martin’s past cases to court. The cases were deemed unwinnable and charges dismissed after courts ruled evidence was illegally gathered by investigators, due to defects in affidavits on which search warrants were obtained.
Ethredge said putting Martin on probation for two decades would allow law enforcement to monitor her activities to see this doesn’t happen again.
It did not take long for Martin to run afoul of the law by violating the terms and conditions of her probation. She has been in the Baxter County jail since June 12th on the probation violations, after being sentenced to her original charges in late April.
Martin’s court records contain information concerning a number of controlled drug buys orchestrated by law enforcement. Many of the buys were made from Martin’s residence along County Road 30.
As part of her original plea back in late April, Martin lost her home, which was seized by the state. Martin stood accused of running a fairly substantial drug business from the residence for a period of nearly 20 years.
The state seized the house and recently sold it for $34,000. According to records maintained by the Baxter County Assessors Office, the home was listed as a 1,200-square-foot structure. It is described in other court records as a two-story log house located at the end of a circular driveway.
Martin’s changed circumstances are illustrated by her indication she is indigent in an affidavit filed in July showing her living with a relative and with a monthly income of $100.
Allegedly, Martin used the proceeds of a large lottery winning to retire the debt on the house the state has now seized and sold.
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