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WILKES-BARRE — In 2014, Luzerne County prosecutors were going to pursue the mandatory two-year state prison sentence for Jason Edward Marth, 44, who admitted to selling crack cocaine several times in a school zone in Edwardsville.
But then, Marth skipped bail and was a fugitive for nearly five years until he was caught May 13 after a traffic stop in Courtdale.
While Marth, of Trucksville, was running from the law, the state Supreme Court in 2015 struck down drug-free school zone mandatory sentencings, ruling any fact that increases a minimum sentence must be proven as an element of the crime to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt.
In Marth’s case, he pleaded guilty on May 28, 2014, to three separate counts of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and criminal use of communication facility instead of opting for a jury trial. Investigators alleged Marth sold crack cocaine in a school zone on Aug. 31, Sept. 20 and Oct. 25 in 2012, court records say.
When Marth failed to appear to be sentenced on July 28, 2014, a judge issued an arrest warrant for failure to appear. The warrant remained active until he was caught following the traffic stop in Courtdale.
In court Wednesday, Marth finally appeared for his sentencing hearing in custody of the county sheriffs department.
“Where were you for the last four years and 10 months? You were out as a fugitive in society on three felony drug cases,” asked Judge Tina Polachek Gartley.
“I’ve been around, working. I was hoping not to get in trouble anymore,” Marth said.
Marth’s attorney, Brian Corcoran, told the judge his client was a drug addict who sold crack cocaine to feed his addiction. Corcoran requested a lower sentence to include drug and alcohol rehabilitation due to the mandatory sentence that once applied at the time of Marth’s arrest no longer applies.
Assistant District Attorney Angela Sperrazza acknowledged that the mandatory sentence is no longer in effect but requested a lengthy prison sentence due to Marth being a fugitive for nearly five years and the felony drug trafficking offenses.
“I don’t believe the defendant should benefit with a lesser sentence,” Sperrazza noted.
Marth told the judge he does not belong in drug and alcohol rehabilitation claiming he got over his crack cocaine addition by switching to Suboxone he got off the streets.
Despite the two-year mandatory sentence Marth once faced, Polachek Gartley recommended Marth be evaluated by the state Department of Corrections to determine if he can benefit from the two-year State Intermediate Punishment program, which includes intense drug and alcohol rehabilitation counseling.
If Marth is not accepted into the SIP program, Polachek Gartley will sentence him to a prison term at a later date.