Family Argues With Judge—Calls Prosecutor a Liar—PRISON

Added: 2026-05-31

[00:00:00]Are you folks with her today?

[00:00:02]>> Yes, sir.

[00:00:03]>> Who are you? Folks, would you please sit down? You must now allow me to finish.

[00:00:08]Have a mental health problem. You're on mental health medications that you may or may not be complying with and you're adding alcohol to the mix. Then you're getting behind the wheel of a car.

[00:00:19]>> Uh, Miss Nicholson, anything on behalf of the state?

[00:00:22]>> Yes, your honor. Uh, the state is requesting that Miss Markham be sentenced to a minimum of 24 months in prison. This is not her first failure to comply. Um, this is her first OVI, but she does currently still have an OVI pending out of Mary'sville that was pending at the time of this offense that she uh failed to appear on due to being incarcerated on this case. Uh, the underlying facts of this case are that uh when uh Franklin Police Department attempted to initiate a traffic stop, Miss Markhamm did in fact stop, spoke with the officer for approximately 60 seconds. Um when he asked her to exit the vehicle, she put the car in drive and drove away at a high rate of speed.

[00:01:02]Um in fact, the officer believed she had crashed because she um was hitting the curbs so hard and he lost sight of her.

[00:01:09]Turns out she fled to her >> Miss Nichols. Folks, would you please sit down?

[00:01:13]>> I'm sorry. I couldn't hear you.

[00:01:17]>> Sorry.

[00:01:17]>> That's all right. Go ahead. I'm sorry.

[00:01:19]She fled to her residence uh where Springboro and Franklin officers cleared that residence, ultimately locating um Miss Markham in a closet. She continued to be um kind of verbally uncooperative with officers um until she was booked into the Warren County Jail. Um clearly her past conduct has not and those consequences have not taught her um anything. She has not learned from that.

[00:01:45]So, we do believe a prison sentence is appropriate in this case.

[00:01:50]>> All right. Thank you. Anything from probation?

[00:01:52]>> Nothing further, your honor.

[00:01:53]>> Mr. Hus.

[00:01:54]>> Yes, your honor. Good afternoon. Um, yeah, facts are egregious. I can't quibble with those. I've been through all of the discovery and seen repeated perspectives from the different body cams and so forth.

[00:02:10]uh you know behind all this uh conduct is some serious mental issues that that have to be addressed. Um, I understand from the pre-sentence investigation that a level 2.1 um, intensive outpatient service would be something that might work. Uh, with weekly mental health individual sessions and contact with the psychiatric provider to make sure that the any medication she has for that for mental illness are properly adjusted. It's my understanding from a message from her aunt that the aunt would be able to provide a home a residence for her uh in that circumstance. I will say that Jacqueline has taken responsibility fairly readily for for what she did. I understand there haven't been any rule violations in in the jail uh since she's been held. Um, and I understand too that her probation in Middletown, at least the probation there, um, had been working out. Uh, she's entitled to, as I understand, 148 days of of credit for time served.

[00:03:23]>> Miss Markhamm, is there anything you'd like to say?

[00:03:26]>> Um, yes. I had a panic attack at the time, and I don't remember much of exactly what happened.

[00:03:34]um which is kind of scary to me. But um other than that, I've been um in jail for I guess I think it's 147 days today.

[00:03:44]And um I've been complying and working as a trustee in the pod in the jail.

[00:03:55]But um yeah, um just a panic attack. I kind of feel like I'm having one now.

[00:04:01]like I've been getting them a little bit more so as I age, as I get older. Um, and I had just gotten to counseling to work with different medications for those before I before this happened.

[00:04:42]Are you folks with her today?

[00:04:44]>> Yes, sir.

[00:04:45]>> And who are you?

[00:04:46]>> I'm her aunt Jan. It's my home that she lived in, and I was her caretaker during this time when she had this episode. Are you aware of her true mental issue?

[00:04:59]>> Am I aware of her true mental issues? I don't have no idea what that even means.

[00:05:04]>> She is a schizophrenic.

[00:05:07]I gave Bruce all her medical information from Butler Behavior Atrium Hospital Access in Middletown. She had an episode and what the uh prosecutor's table said is not true. And if you did read the police officer's report, she was out of sorts. I have spoke with him myself as well as read the report.

[00:05:31]>> What What did she say that was not true?

[00:05:34]>> It It was She was She has no memory of that.

[00:05:39]>> Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. You said two different things there. You said what the prosecutor said was not true.

[00:05:45]>> What?

[00:05:46]>> Tell me exactly what she said that is not true, ma'am.

[00:05:49]>> All right. non-compliant. She was non-compliant by definition. I mean, and she's admitted to that. She's been found guilty of that. So, tell me what what what again tell me again what she said that you say is not true.

[00:06:04]>> May I speak?

[00:06:06]>> I I I'm going to give you this opportunity. Well, let me when I say non-compliant, even in the uh report from the Franklin police officer, because all of them was at my residence, I'm very aware of what happened because I was there.

[00:06:23]I allowed them in my home. Um, she was so out of it, answering, doing simple commands was beyond her. when you are in a full-blown schizophrenic episode >> plus alcohol.

[00:06:42]>> Yes. Plus alcohol.

[00:06:44]>> See, here here's the problem that I have with what you're saying. And again, I I'm not disagreeing that there aren't some mental health issues here. Uh >> oh, they're severe.

[00:06:55]>> Okay. Again, I you you've lived with it.

[00:06:58]I have not. The problem is when you have someone that is being uh that that is uh is she supposed to be on medication?

[00:07:07]>> Yes.

[00:07:07]>> Is she compliant with that medication?

[00:07:10]>> No.

[00:07:11]>> Well, >> number one, no. And number two, I'm going to guess that her psychiatrist that prescribed her that mental health medication would not approve of her also using alcohol and driving from driving a motor vehicle and fleeing at high speeds from police. I'm I'm just guessing.

[00:07:28]>> Well, I don't agree with that either.

[00:07:30]However, >> okay, so that's what we're here today for.

[00:07:33]>> Two deaths in three days in our family.

[00:07:36]>> Ma'am, people deal ma'am, stop right there. I understand that people deal with grief differently. But when you uh when you're when you have a mental health problem, you're on mental health medications that you may or may not be complying with and you're adding alcohol to the mix, then you're getting behind the wheel of a car and she's driving to the extent where she's claiming she doesn't even remember driving, fleeing from police on a high speed. She puts herself at risk.

[00:08:05]>> She puts that police officer at risk and she puts the general public at risk, which I have a duty to to defend. So, if we're all clear on all of those facts, there there simply is no excuse that you can give me, whether it's mental health, drug and alcohol addiction, or grieving a a loss of a loved one, because I everyone experiences those things, but it's how you respond to those. So, today she's here because she didn't respond very well. She broke the law. This is a felony of the third degree. and and and my one of my obligations, you know, and again, I don't want to get into an argument with you about this because you want what's best for your niece, right?

[00:08:52]>> Well, I she has not been able to receive the proper treatment in my county's jail. The nurse I I will have to say the staff has been wonderful. They locked her down as soon as she got here. Me and the Spring Burrow police officer who had worked with behavior health across the street that had been to our home many times knew she was in an episode. We called over here. They locked her down.

[00:09:20]When she was allowed released out of that to the general population, she called the nurse had her call me and she said they said I did bad things.

[00:09:33]What did I do? she if she has no memory and if you understand what schizophrenia episodes are it's not a choice. No one wants to be a schizophrenic anymore than they want to have dementia.

[00:09:49]And we are but but medication.

[00:09:54]>> The place where you and I will always disagree is you know if someone has a mental health and she's under your care or when someone has a mental health condition that they recognize that they have it that they're prescribed medication to help them to deal help them deal with that mental health situation. You just admitted, you've already admitted to me that she was not compliant with taking her mental health medication that was properly prescribed.

[00:10:19]And on top of that, she's drinking alcohol to the point where she's operating a vehicle impaired. Both of those put people at risk. I'm not going to continue this argument with you but because again you know you know I recognize the mental health aspect of it but I have an obligation on the other side as well to the general public that when someone drives impaired at a high rate of speed fleeing from a police officer we have a problem in our county with with people doing that. people coming from Dayton or Cincinnati, they want to come through our county and for some reason they think that they uh that the police are not allowed to pursue them.

[00:11:03]It is not true. The police are allowed to pursue them. And if so, when people do not follow the the instructions and orders, lawful orders of a police officer, they put themselves, they put the officer, and they put the general public at risk. And we have a we we simply I have one or two of these cases every week where people flee from police and and someone's going to have to get the message out that you can't do that.

[00:11:28]You know, I'm sure you've seen the reals on social media with people sitting in their cars and saying, "I don't have to listen to you. I don't have to do what you say." Yes, you do. And and people that that act that way, um they deserve whatever consequences come their way from my perspective. So again, I want to recognize her mental health and I and I and I believe that I am. But there is always consequences when we make a choice. And her choice that day was to get behind the wheel of a car, consume alcohol to the point where she was impaired and she fled from an officer.

[00:12:02]>> She was not just impaired by alcohol though is my point.

[00:12:06]>> Yeah.

[00:12:07]>> Sir Sar, something you'd like to add to this conversation.

[00:12:10]>> So I I just want to say my name is Miles Breer. Uh it's very nice to meet you, your honor. Um I'm a recent friend of friend of hers. We became friends. Um about 3 years ago um I kind of left uh and went went to different states. We'd kind of been estranged um for a minute.

[00:12:26]Um honestly our relationship started romantically and we ended as just friends. Um, I just wanted to say that I and I appreciate you acknowledging the mental health issues, but I just and I actually didn't know that that she had gotten to the point that she had um that that she is at now. Um, and and it was I came back to state. I didn't even know she was in jail. I came back to the state recently. Um, I tried to get in touch with her and uh, there was a day that she was released um, to go to the dentist and I and I got in touch with her and I got in touch with Jane and I found out about the situation and I found out uh, about as from from what Jan has told me a diagnosis of of schizophrenia. All all I just wanted to say um is that I experienced um before this um Jacqueline um it seems like she she does go into to to different mental mental states and it's almost like you're talking to a different person and it is regardless of alcohol. I understand that she did drink that day and that was her choice. Um I there was a a lot of hardship and I know Jan's very emotional and there was a lot of hardship in the family that um led up to um the the events of of that day. Um you know I know I know that Jan just happened to leave Jan was dealing with a lot. She just happened to leave her keys um out where Jacqueline could see them and it was a mistake that amongst deaths she's she's been beating herself up on the phone for me for leaving the keys out. Um, we've we've really been she's been trying and I'm I'm starting to try to be a part of making her healthy again and whatnot. Um, but it it it's yeah, it's it's been it's been a lot for her.

[00:14:06]She doesn't she doesn't have any parents and I I know that that none of none of that justifies breaking the law. Um, but I just I hope that you take that into consideration. I've been talking to her in jail. She's been varying degrees of good and bad. Uh, some days I I talk to her and I feel like I'm talking to Jacqueline. other days I talked to her and I it doesn't feel like I'm talking to Jacqueline. Um and uh I think uh jail has been very hard on her. That's the point of it. I understand. Um but yeah, I uh I would I would ask for for you know you to take those into consideration. So, >> and again, you when when I'm looking at uh I I don't sentence uh I don't have uh set and hard rules uh for sentencing, but I will say like like I said earlier with these types of offenses, we have a problem here in our county with people doing this. Uh the prosecutor's office position is always and it doesn't matter what what uh how many times they've had it before, whatever their prior record is, they're always asking for 24 months.

[00:15:09]That's what they always ask for. I don't always agree with them and those two ladies sitting there, the prosecuting attorneys will tell you that I do these on an individualized basis and it's not uncommon for me to grant community control to someone who's committed this offense. However, when someone comes before me and this is their second time doing it, that's a problem. All right, let me sit.

[00:15:31]>> Just one more thing, your honor. Just I just want to put this on the record.

[00:15:35]Miss Riley talked about some papers that she'd sent to me regarding Jacqueline's mental health. I did receive those. I thought I went through them. I thought the best use of those would be to give them to the pre-sentence investigation folks and that's what I >> they're part of the presence investigation. So, thank thank you for that clarification. The court has considered the statements made here today. The purposes and principles of sentencing the relevant seriousness and recidivism factors. Uh the court does find that you are not a minimal to community control at this time and the prison is necessary.

[00:16:02]>> I'm sorry.

[00:16:04]>> That that was the radio. Your honor, can I say one more thing?

[00:16:08]We've been talking back and forth on the email.

[00:16:10]>> Sir, you're not going to change my mind at this point. Ple please understand that that that I everything that you've said I've taken into consideration, but you know, you must now allow me to finish.

[00:16:21]>> Okay.

[00:16:22]>> My sentence.

[00:16:24]All right. Court has considered the free sentence investigation the purposes and principles of sentence including punishment, deterrence, and protection of the public. So, I am going to order you to serve 24 months in prison. You have 148 days jail time credit. You are uh hereby ordered your sus license is suspended for your lifetime on the uh fail to comply. On the OVI charge, uh you're ordered to serve 180 days in the Warren County Jail.