Williamsburg man gets 28 years in jail for string of thefts

Whitley Circuit Judge Dan Ballou sentenced a Williamsburg man to 28 years in prison Monday afternoon in connection with five separate felony cases.

Jesse Ray Terry, 38, pled guilty on March 13 to a pair of auto theft charges, receiving stolen property under $10,000, theft by unlawful taking, second-degree forgery and second-degree escape.

Commonwealth’s Attorney Allen Trimble said that the reason the sentence was so high was largely due to the large number of cases against Terry.

"I think it was a fair resolution. He got all that time because there were lots of cases," Trimble said. "We just had to do something with him. If we had tried them all, it could have been much worse."

On April 13, 2011, Terry allegedly had various roofing materials in his possession, which had been stolen from Gracie Cox, according to his indictment.

On April 1, 2012, Terry allegedly took a 1990 Saturn automobile belonging to John C. Lawson, according to an indictment.

On April 24, 2012, Terry allegedly took a 1988 Monte Carlo belonging to Mark Hatfield, and aided another man in forging Hatfield’s signature on a title to the car, which belonged to Hatfield and was transferred to Colin Massey, according to his indictment.

On Aug. 12, 2012, Terry allegedly escaped from the custody of the Whitley County Detention Center.

On Dec. 19, 2012, Terry allegedly took a 1992 Mercury Cougar, which belonged to Jessica Fore, according to an indictment.

According to indictments, Hatfield had four prior felony convictions dating as far back as 2002 on charges including: theft by unlawful taking, theft by deception and second-degree escape.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, persistent felony offender charges against Terry were dismissed.