WESTFIELD – A judge dismissed earlier charges against a man charged with drug trafficking, but he will remain behind bars because his mother took back bail she had posted.
Jacob A. Lisheness, 32, was arrested on September 11 and arraigned on charges of cocaine trafficking in 36-100 grams and conspiracy to violate drug law with two co-defendants.
At his September 14 arraignment, Westfield District Judge Philip A. Contant set bail at $3,000 for the trafficking charges, of which Lisheness had already paid $2,500 to secure his release following his Friday arrest.
Since Lisheness’ arrest violated his pre-trial probation for an earlier charge dating back to May, Contant held Lisheness without right to bail deeming him a danger to society.
Lisheness had been released on his own recognizance at a July 10 arraignment after being charged with two counts of threat to commit a crime for allegedly arranging for three men to go to the Sky Box Sports Bar, located at 25 Point Grove Road, on May 10 to beat up a patron. He also allegedly threatened to rape and kill an 18-year-old bartender if she interfered with his plan.
On Tuesday and Friday, Lisheness’ private attorney, Donald Stolgitis, argued that the threat to commit a crime charges should be dismissed for two reasons.
First, Stolgitis told Westfield District Court Judge Jacqueline Connolly Friday that no show cause hearing had been held prior to Lisheness’ arraignment and that the threats he had made were simply “drunkin’ barroom talk.”
Assistant District Attorney Magali Montes asked Connolly to deny the motion to vacate the charges stating that the victim was still shaken up by the threats the next day when she spoke to police; therefore, the choice of the Clerk Magistrate to forego a show cause hearing was appropriate since it was determined that there was an imminent risk of bodily injury.
After hearing arguments Friday morning, Connolly took the case under advisement and issued her decision to dismiss the threat to commit a crime charges Friday afternoon.
Lisheness would have only had to post $500 of the $3,000 cash bail to be free, but a spokeswoman at the Clerk Magistrate’s Office Friday afternoon said that Lisheness’ mother had taken back the $2,500 bail “surrendering him to the court.”
Lisheness’ parents appeared in court on Friday along with his girlfriend, Selina M. Hine, 21, of Westfield who has been charged as one of his co-conspirators in the drug trafficking case.
When asked for comment, Lisheness’ mother told this reporter, “I’m not talking to you–you’ve destroyed enough lives!”
Lisheness’ arrest on charges of drug trafficking stemmed from police having him under surveillance since August after confidential informants told Westfield police that he was selling large amounts of cocaine out of his residence, Montes said at his September 14 arraignment.
At 10:30 p.m. September 11, police stopped a vehicle, in which Lisheness was a passenger, near the Evangelical Free Church, located at 568 Southwick Road, for probable cause of drug trafficking.
Police, including detectives and officers from a number of communities, had reason to believe the group had gone to Hartford to pick up cocaine, which they intended to distribute in the Westfield/Southwick area, according to Westfield Police Capt. Michael McCabe.
The driver, Angelina G. Pagano, 22, of Westfield, and Hine were charged with cocaine trafficking in 36-100 grams and conspiracy to violate drug law.
Montes said that Westfield police followed the defendant to Hartford and allegedly witnessed him purchasing 57 grams of cocaine and concealing it in the hood of Pagano’s 2008 Volkswagen.
Contant released Hine and Pagano on $2,500 personal surety each at their September 14 arraignments.
Hine and Pagano are due back in court for a pretrial hearing on October 28.
Lisheness is due back in court for the drug trafficking charges on October 29 for a bind over hearing, meaning his case may get transferred to Hampden County Superior Court.
Staff Writer Christine Charnosky can be reached at [email protected]
