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Man gets jail term for littering
Perry: Eight-month sentence makes a statement
Friday, April 6, 2012
A Martinsville man was sentenced Thursday to eight months in jail for littering in Henry County.
Joseph A. Eggleston, 34, was tried in the Henry County General District Court, according to a news release.
The investigation began in early February, when Deputy M.W. Hooper contacted Eggleston as part of an investigation of trash dumped on Terry’s Mountain Road, the release said.
Hooper determined Eggleston was responsible for the trash and told him to pick it up, the release said.
Eggleston declined to do so and was charged with dumping trash on private property, according to the release and online court records.
A work crew working in conjunction with the Henry County Sheriff’s Office picked up eight bags of trash at the scene, the release said.
Eggleston was sentenced to 12 months in jail with four months suspended, according to the release. He was fined $1,000.
If he appeals the decision, there will be no bond, the release said.
“Eggleston was remanded into custody on the spot for an eight-month active sentence,” the release said.
Henry County Sheriff Lane Perry said he believes two factors contributed to the length of the sentence: Eggleston was offered an opportunity to clean up the trash and did not; and litter has become a high-profile local issue.
“Good, decent citizens are tired of picking up the trash of others,” Perry said. “That statement was sent.”
Perry said Thursday’s case was the first significant case to be prosecuted since the sheriff’s office and others in the community began intensifying efforts to fight litter.
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