Magisterial District Judge Edward Lewis has only been presiding over the court in Port Carbon for about nine months but apparently he’s gotten familiar with the face of one particular Schuylkill County man.
On Tuesday, Howard Ash IV appeared before Lewis for a preliminary hearing on the latest charges he was facing, This wasn’t his first time before Lewis in the last nine months. In fact, it’s been about a handful of times just this calendar year.
As he prepared for the hearing on felony theft and receiving stolen property charges, Lewis entered teh courtroom, saw Ash and drolly said, “If this were a church, you’d probably have a pew with your name on it.”
Charges in this latest case, like previous cases before it, were withdrawn. No victim appeared and police pulled back the charges. That’s happened several times already this year.
Ash was accused of possessing two guns that weren’t his. Previously, Ash told police that while he was walking along Route 209 last summer, someone had shot him. Later, police learned that Ash had shot himself accidentally.
In other cases, Ash was accused of domestic violence in two separate incidents but those charges were also dismissed after a victim failed to appear to testify against him.
Ash wasn’t finding much humor in the judge’s line, however. He even wondered why the charges he was facing Tuesday were being dismissed, genuinely sounding confused by the revelation.
“Why are they withdrawing the charges,” he asked, not getting an answer.
Ash then told Lewis, unprompted, that he believes he’s the victim of ongoing harassment by police and is anxious to have an internal affairs investigation launched to figure out why he’s being targeted.
This is a claim that Ash testified about while he was on trial this summer at Schuylkill County Courthouse, when he was acquitted on a DUI charge.
Lewis told him that such an investigation could only be initiated once he’s cleared of all charges against him. Ash wasn’t sure if he was through all the cases he was facing but believed he was.
It’s not the end, though. Records show Ash is still due in District Court in Orwigsburg in mid-October to face drug possession charges related to a traffic stop during which police allege they found a bag of meth in his pocket.
That traffic stop happened just hours prior to the non-jury trial he won this summer, during which he testified that he hasn’t touched drugs like meth in years.
Subscribe to Coal Region Canary
Get email updates from Coal Region Canary by becoming a subscriber today. Just enter your email address below to get started!Support Coal Region Canary
Like our reporting and want to support truly local news in Schuylkill County? Your small donations help. For as little as $5, your contribution will allow us to cover more news that directly affects you. Consider donating today by hitting the big yellow button below ...