James “Duke” S. Franklin, 42, looks toward a jury of citizens after they returned four guilty verdicts following closing statements in a two-day trial held in Barren Circuit Court this week. Franklin was found guilty on drug trafficking, organized crime and tampering with physical evidence charges.
(BRENNAN CRAIN/WCLU NEWS)
GLASGOW — A Hart County man was sentenced to 70 years in prison Thursday at the end of a two-day trial in Barren Circuit Court.
James “Duke” S. Franklin, 42, of Horse Cave, was found guilty on all charges the prosecution had brought against him. The jury convened for about 15 minutes before they returned with the guilty verdicts. The sentencing portion of the jury’s deliberations lasted about 35 minutes.
A jury convicted him on charges of organized crime (criminal syndicate), two counts of first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance and tampering with physical evidence. The jury also found him guilty of being a persistent felony offender.
Barren River Drug Task Force detectives provided testimonies to the court regarding their surveillance of Franklin. They were alerted of potential drug activity at a home located at 311 Park Avenue sometime in early 2019. They said Franklin appeared at that location one night and left within about 10 minutes of his arrival. He had apparently dropped drugs off at the home, they said.
An eventual search of the home revealed a backpack containing almost an ounce of methamphetamine. The backpack belonged to Teryn Hill, another known methamphetamine dealer. She testified in court Wednesday about her involvement in the syndicate.
Franklin was pulled over that night, but no drugs were found inside his car. A narcotics canine alerted on the vehicle, however. Attorneys reasoned he was “spooked” after that drop, which discouraged him from dropping drugs at the home thereafter. But he did not stop supplying drugs to someone else, the prosecution said.
Ralph “Jody” McCandless, another known methamphetamine supplier, was found to be in possession of a large quantity of meth at his Adams Place apartment. Authorities then used him to stage an eventual arrest of Franklin.
McCandless and Franklin had planned to meet up at a McDonalds in Cave City on May 9, 2019. Authorities asked McCandless to follow through with the plan while he was detained. He agreed and asked Franklin to provide him with “two whole,” which is a street term for two ounces of methamphetamine.
A traffic stop was conducted in Cave City after police located Franklin in a rental vehicle parked at McDonalds. They said Franklin hit his brakes but continued onward for a stretch before he eventually pulled over. The prosecution reasoned he had attempted to conceal drugs before he stopped.
A subsequent search of the vehicle yielded no drugs. But a search of Franklin’s pants did. Police discovered approximately two ounces of methamphetamine, or “two whole,” tucked away there.
A criminal syndicate, by law, is one where three or more people join together to commit a crime. The prosecution called Franklin’s involvement a “business” since he supplied to others who would sell the product.
Ken Garrett, Franklin’s defense counsel, said the jury was responsible for deciding whether Franklin was guilty of the crimes alleged in those specific instances. They were not to decide his guilt regarding other instances because “that’s on him.” The prosecution continued to reason he was “in business” because he had dropped a large quantity of methamphetamine to Hill and planned to drop “two whole” to McCandless.
Authorities testified that a regular methamphetamine user might use one gram at most. There are about 28 grams in one ounce, and 56 grams in two ounces.
“It is inherent in that act,” said Resa Gardner, assistant commonwealth’s attorney, “when you are delivering that much methamphetamine to a person, you’re delivering that with the knowledge that it’s going to be sold.”
Because Franklin was convicted of the crimes and then found guilty as a persistent felony offender, his sentencing was more severe. The jury issued a 70-year sentence for the crimes. He will be eligible for parole after a minimum of 10 years in prison.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled May 23 at 10 a.m.
