‘Mama’ gets prison in cocaine case

BUCYRUS – A Galion drug trafficker repeatedly referred to as “Mama” in the trial of another drug defendant last month had her day in court Thursday in Crawford County Common Pleas Court.

It was decidedly quicker than the time spent to decide Kenan Neal’s fate in July. Andrea Gullett, 39, of the Galion Arms, pleaded guilty Thursday to trafficking in cocaine, a third-degree felony, as well as possessing the drug, a felony of the fifth degree. Despite pleading with the judge for leniency, she was sentenced to the maximum penalties allowed for the crimes.

“I am ready to start a new life, I didn’t want to be this person anymore. I am not a bad person, I want to change,” Gullett told Judge Sean Leuthold as she faced a total of four years in prison. “My son will be a teenager and my mother will be dead.”

It was also noted in court that Gullett did not have any prior felony convictions. But the judge followed the sentencing recommendation of assistant county prosecutor Ryan Hoovler, who characterized Gullett, or “Mama,” as a well-known drug dealer in Galion.

“You’ve been selling drugs for a long time,” Leuthold told the defendant. “This is a significant amount of buys (three) and there was a child present. You should know that cocaine and heroin are destroying our community.”

“I know,” Gullett said.

The woman was the first of eight people arrested last week in a series of drug busts in Galion, Crestline and Bucyrus. Kenan Neal, of Crestline, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison last month for cocaine possession, had mentioned Gullett to investigators during a taped confession.

Also Thursday, Tyler Danner, 21, of McCutchenville, was sentenced to five years of community control for a fifth-degree charge of heroin possession.

“He’s living proof that there’s life after heroin,” his attorney, Jaceda Blazef, said. “He volunteered for treatment and he’s gainfully employed.”

“You guys saved my life,” Danner told the judge. “I made a mistake, but I’m not a dumb kid. I’ve been clean for four months.”

Leuthold, however, wasn’t impressed.

“Don’t be smug, four months is nothing. You have a long way to go. People get so caught up in the adulation, but you’re just getting started,” the judge said, raising his voice.

“I’m not going to stand up and clap for you. When you’re clean for two years, I will.”

Finally, Lynae Stewart, 27, of Bucyrus, was sentenced to four years in prison for burglary Thursday, a second-degree felony, after pleading guilty to the crime.

Hoovler said Stewart had stolen prescription medication from elderly residents at the assisted-living center where she worked. The assistant prosecutor recommended a sentence of four years in prison, half the maximum allowed, and the judge followed his advice.

Leuthold accused the defendant of taking advantage of the elderly to feed a drug addiction, but added that “this is not your normal burglary, there was no violence, and you apparently had a good relationship with the victim.”

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Twitter: @ToddHillMNJ