Greenfield woman faces drug charges after traffic stop
GREENFIELD — A Greenfield woman faces felony drug charges after admitting she deals methamphetamine to help pay her bills, court records state.
Hilaire J. Chittum, 42, 1914 Founders Drive, was arrested Monday following a traffic stop in the 1300 block of West Main Street. City police had received two tips from area residents in recent weeks that Chittum was using drugs. Leaders at the department passed that information on to officers, likely leading the Greenfield Police Department officer who stopped her to ask to search her car, Chief Jeff Rasche said.
Officers found methamphetamine and other drugs inside, court documents state.
She now faces a Level 4 felony count of dealing methamphetamine, a Level 6 felony count of possession of methamphetamine and two Class A misdemeanors counts of possession of a controlled substance.
She’s since pleaded not guilty to the charges she faces and has been released from the Hancock County Jail on a $2,500 bond. She’s slated to appear in court again Jan. 11.
Police stopped Chittum Monday for driving 12 mph over the posted speed limit of 30 mph, court documents state.
A K-9 officer from the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department that on duty overnight was called to the scene to help officers search the car and signaled drugs were inside, charging documents state.
Before searching the vehicle, officers asked Chittum if there was anything in the car she wanted to tell them about. She told them the drugs were in her wallet in the passenger seat, according to court documents.
Inside the car, officers found two small baggies containing what appeared to be methamphetamine, court records state. They also found a pill bottle for the weight loss supplement Garcinia Cambogia and about 15 Suboxone strips, a narcotic that can relieve withdraw symptoms from more powerful drugs, charging documents state.
Inside the pill bottle, they found two dextroamphetamine pills, which is used to treat ADHD, according to court records.
When police arrested Chittum and searched her, she told them she had methamphetamine in her boot, as well, court documents state.
After arresting her, police pressed her about the drugs, and she told them she deals methamphetamine to make extra money to help pay her bills, according to court documents.
She told them she only deals to about five people and gets the meth from a man in Indianapolis, charging documents state.
The night before her arrest, she purchased about $120 of meth, she told police. She breaks the crystal-like substance up and distributes it, according to charging documents.
She also uses the drug every other day or so, she said, court documents state.
When asked whether she deals the drug from her home, she told police she has, but she tries to make the sales elsewhere, charging documents state.
When asked about the Suboxone strips, Chittum told police she was holding them from a friend, but she has been prescribed them in the past, according to court documents.
She also uses the pills police found in her car, she said. She got them from a friend, she told officers, charging documents state.
The Level 4 felony Chittum faces carries a penalty of two 12 years and up to $10,000 in fines, the Level 6 felony carries a penalty of six months to two and a half years.
The Class A misdemeanors she faces carry a penalty of up to one year and up to $5,000 in fines.
Article source: http://www.greenfieldreporter.com/2017/12/01/woman_faces_drug_charges_after_traffic_stop/