Defendant Leaves County Circuit Courtroom, Doesn't Come Back
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
In an unusual turn of events, a jury found a defendant guilty Tuesday afternoon even though she was not present in the courtroom.
A 12-person jury took just 34 minutes to find Niccole Paschall, 23, of 163 N. CR 175E, Warsaw, guilty of dealing cocaine, less than one gram (a Class B Felony), in January. The crime is punishable with six to 20 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.
Paschall entered the courtroom Tuesday morning before the trial started and listened to pre-trial arguments. She left the Kosciusko County Justice Building before jury selection began and did not return at any point during the trial.
Paschall reportedly told her parents she wanted to buy a pack of cigarettes and asked to borrow their vehicle. She left and never returned.
Once the jury delivered its verdict, Kosciusko Circuit Court Judge Rex Reed noted Paschall's absence, revoked her bond and issued a warrant for her arrest. Once Paschall is found, she will be held without bail until her sentencing, which will be scheduled after she is taken into custody.
The jury, made up of nine women and three men, listened to testimony from four witnesses before beginning deliberations at 1:42 p.m. They came back with a verdict at 2:16 p.m.
Paschall was arrested Jan. 6, 2005, after selling cocaine to a confidential informant of the Kosciusko County Drug Task Force.
During the trial, the jury heard evidence from the informant, two officers with the drug task force and a forensic scientist from the Indiana State Police laboratory in Fort Wayne.
The informant told the jury that he set up the purchase of cocaine with Paschall, then met with members of the drug task force to prepare for his meeting with Paschall later that afternoon.
Once the informant made the purchase and had the cocaine, he turned it over to the drug task force.
The task force sealed and stored the substance, which was taken to the laboratory in Fort Wayne. The substance was positively identified as cocaine, then returned to Kosciusko County where it was stored until Tuesday's trial. [[In-content Ad]]
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In an unusual turn of events, a jury found a defendant guilty Tuesday afternoon even though she was not present in the courtroom.
A 12-person jury took just 34 minutes to find Niccole Paschall, 23, of 163 N. CR 175E, Warsaw, guilty of dealing cocaine, less than one gram (a Class B Felony), in January. The crime is punishable with six to 20 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines.
Paschall entered the courtroom Tuesday morning before the trial started and listened to pre-trial arguments. She left the Kosciusko County Justice Building before jury selection began and did not return at any point during the trial.
Paschall reportedly told her parents she wanted to buy a pack of cigarettes and asked to borrow their vehicle. She left and never returned.
Once the jury delivered its verdict, Kosciusko Circuit Court Judge Rex Reed noted Paschall's absence, revoked her bond and issued a warrant for her arrest. Once Paschall is found, she will be held without bail until her sentencing, which will be scheduled after she is taken into custody.
The jury, made up of nine women and three men, listened to testimony from four witnesses before beginning deliberations at 1:42 p.m. They came back with a verdict at 2:16 p.m.
Paschall was arrested Jan. 6, 2005, after selling cocaine to a confidential informant of the Kosciusko County Drug Task Force.
During the trial, the jury heard evidence from the informant, two officers with the drug task force and a forensic scientist from the Indiana State Police laboratory in Fort Wayne.
The informant told the jury that he set up the purchase of cocaine with Paschall, then met with members of the drug task force to prepare for his meeting with Paschall later that afternoon.
Once the informant made the purchase and had the cocaine, he turned it over to the drug task force.
The task force sealed and stored the substance, which was taken to the laboratory in Fort Wayne. The substance was positively identified as cocaine, then returned to Kosciusko County where it was stored until Tuesday's trial. [[In-content Ad]]