Kaden Ray-Gene Gabbard, 25, Charlottesville
HANCOCK COUNTY — A Charlottesville man who was in hot water for drug crimes will not have to serve more time in the county jail or in prison at the Indiana Department of Corrections (DOC) after a plea deal was accepted in his case Monday afternoon.
Kaden Ray-Gene Gabbard, 25, 300 block of North 18th Street, was facing a Level 2 felony count of dealing methamphetamine, a Level 6 felony count of unlawful possession of a legend drug and a Class C misdemeanor count of possession of paraphernalia stemming from an incident in February of 2023.
Gabbard’s case was closed out in Hancock County Superior Court 1 earlier this week when a plea agreement called for Gabbard to admit guilt to a lessor crime, a Level 3 felony of dealing methamphetamine.
Gabbard was given a nine-year term with a maximum of five years to be executed. However, Judge D.J. Davis ruled there will be no more time served at the DOC or county jail. The Hancock County Prosecutor’s office asked for Gabbard to serve at least four years at the DOC and for Gabbard to take Recovery While Incarcerated classes there.
A pre-sentence investigation (PSI) recommendation from the probation department called for fours years to be served on home detention up front, along with Gabbard becoming a member of Behavioral Health Court (BHC).
In an email to the Daily Reporter, Davis noted that Wayne Addison prepared the PSI for the state and recommended the nine-year term with four years executed to Hancock County Community Corrections GPS Home Detention.
Davis sentenced Gabbard to a nine-year total sentence, but with zero days to be served at the DOC. Gabbard was given credit for 513 days served in jail with five years on home detention, which can be modified after three years.
Gabbard will have to attend BHC while on home detention, the court said. After completion of the home detention portion of the sentence, the balance of the sentence will be served on formal probation.
Addison, Davis noted, pointed out that Gabbard has completed several classes, including parenting and anger management work, and he passed his high school equivalence certificate while he was incarcerated in the local jail.
“Mr. Addison also strongly felt the BHC was best for Mr. Gabbard to obtain a complete mental health evaluation and be required to take a mediation to assist with any disorders revealed from an updated evaluation,” Davis said in the email. “With Mr. Addison’s vast experience with a long list of defendant’s over the year, I relied on his recommendation heavily.”
Davis told Gabbard he would be given a “short leash” while in BHC, and he should know he has a nine-year sentence over his head, and if he doesn’t make it through BHC he could be sentenced to DOC for any time not yet completed and all his suspended time.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Gabbard was originally pulled over in February of 2023 for traffic violations on I-70. Gabbard was driving with a passenger Alexa Donoghue, New Castle, who told an officer she did have a gun in her purse.
Officials noted in the affidavit Gabbard was driving with a suspended license. The officer noted both individual’s pupils appeared abnormal and they denied any alcohol consumption, the affidavit stated. The officer also noticed a black magnetic box sticking out of Donoghue’s purse sitting on the front floorboard where she said the gun was also located.
The officer said, based on training and experience, those types of containers are often used to transport drugs.
When officials got Gabbard out of the car they found hundreds of dollars in cash in his pocket, the affidavit stated. He also refused to give consent to search his vehicle. When a search was eventually done, officials found two clear baggies containing a clear crystal-like substance resembling methamphetamine, the affidavit said.
Officials also found a large, glass meth bong on the front floorboard that had residue inside; a small clear plastic baggie containing a brown piece of paper with more crystal substance; several small clear Ziploc baggies; a black AWS digital scale was also located in the vehicle along with a prescription pill bottle labeled as Lamotrigine.
Officials noted in the report they weighed the large baggie of crystal substance found in the magnetic box and the baggie weighed approximately 40.71 grams and field-tested positive for methamphetamine. The smaller baggie of crystal substance in the magnetic box weighed approximately 2.24 grams, and the small baggie found in the door area weighed approximately 1.3 grams. The combined total of the baggies weighed approximately 44.25 grams.
Donoghue, who is facing the same charges, is set to be sentenced in Superior Court 1 Wednesday.
