A Rootstown man will spend at least five years behind bars after being convicted on a drug trafficking charge earlier this summer.
Cody Baldwin-Neiswanger, 31, was sentenced to five to 7.5 years in prison by Judge Becky Doherty in Portage County Common Pleas Court in Ravenna Dec. 22. Doherty said five years is the minimum sentence Baldwin-Neiswanger will serve, and the Ohio Department of Corrections can impose up to half of his original prison sentence.
“Methamphetamine trafficking poses a serious threat to public safety, destroys families, and fuels crime in our communities,” Portage County Prosecutor Connie J. Lewandowski stated in a news release. “This sentence holds Baldwin-Neiswanger accountable and sends a clear message that those who profit from the distribution of these dangerous drugs will face serious consequences.”
Prosecutor Sean Scahill asked for a sentence of six to nine years, which he said was based on a presentence investigation, Baldwin-Neiswanger’s previous prison record, and the fact that he was in possession of about 35 grams of meth when he was arrested by Ravenna police in July.
According to a Ravenna police report, an off-duty Ravenna police officer saw Baldwin-Neiswanger enter the Subway restaurant on East Main Street around 1 pm July 5. The officer recognized him from previous encounters and knew that the Ohio Adult Parole Authority had issued a warrant for his arrest.
The officer made contact with a K-9 officer on patrol, who responded to the area and saw Baldwin-Neiswanger standing at Main and Chestnut streets. Baldwin-Neiswanger continued walking west on Main Street and the officer stopped him between Park Way and Meridian Street. The officer said he alerted Baldwin-Neiswanger who had K-9 Drago with him. Shortly after, two more officers arrived.
Baldwin-Neiswanger was eventually handcuffed as a third officer arrived in a cruiser to detain him. He continued to resist, the report said, and officers had to restrain him by holding him to the cruiser while they searched.
According to the report three plastic bags containing suspected meth, weighing a total of 35.27 grams, and $612 in cash, were found in the pants pockets.
He pleaded guilty in October to second-degree felony aggravated drug trafficking, with a forfeiture specification for $612. Other charges outlined in an indictment earlier this year were dismissed in a plea deal.
Baldwin-Neiswanger’s lawyer, Joe Mesuri, asked that the prison sentence be limited to two or three years, and that he be sent to drug treatment after the prison is over. According to the plea agreement, the minimum sentence imposed could vary from two to eight years in prison.
“He understands that if he wants to stop going to prison he will need to change his life, and I think he is finally at the point where he wants to do that and make that change for himself.”
Baldwin-Neiswanger asked Doherty to reduce his sentence to two years, and send him to drug rehabilitation after his sentence ends.
“I was ruining my own life,” he said, adding that he battled addiction throughout his adult life. “To be honest, I’m lost and I need help… I know I can change for the better but I need help, and I think it all starts with facing my drug addiction.”
Doherty said she has heard him say similar things before. “To be honest, it’s like a broken record,” she said, adding that he had “so much meth” while on parole.
“That’s part of my problem,” she said. “You had other opportunities, and you didn’t take advantage of them.”
She encouraged him to take advantage of opportunities to pursue treatment in prison.
The Ohio Department of Corrections, she said, will make the decision on whether Baldwin-Neiswanger will be released after five years or serve additional time, based on factors such as his behavior in prison, whether he takes advantage of prison programming, and whether he is a danger to the community if released. He will be randomly drug tested, she said.
He will also face a $7,500 fine, which he will have to pay upon his release from prison, Doherty said.
The $612 he was carrying at the time of the arrest will be forfeited to the Ravenna Police Department, she said.
According to Portage County court records, Doherty sentenced Baldwin-Neiswanger to four years in prison in May 2021 after pleading guilty to three fourth-degree felony counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor and fifth-degree custodial interference, all involving a girl who was 14 at the time.
Doherty also determined that Baldwin-Neiswanger is a Tier II sex offender, which requires him to register with the sheriff of any county he lives, works or attends school in every six months for 25 years.
In a plea agreement, additional charges in a grand jury indictment were dismissed, including five counts of rape and one count of kidnapping, all first-degree felonies, and two additional counts of unlawful sexual conduct with a minor. The dismissed charges involved the same victim.
He was released last May and placed on five years of probation under the supervision of the Adult Parole Authority, according to Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections records.
Record-Courier reporter Jeff Saunders contributed to this story. Reporter Diane Smith can be reached at dsmith@recordpub.com.
This article originally appeared on the Record-Courier: Rootstown man sentenced to 5 years in prison for drug trafficking