Probation violations lead to prison for local man

A Wise resident was sentenced to prison Jan. 24 for his fourth violation of parole.

Emmit Franklin Sexton Jr., 38, was sentenced in Wise County circuit court to seven years and six months, according to Commonwealth Attorney Chuck Slemp.

The conviction was the result of absconding from supervision, failing to appear in court and failing to maintain communication with his probation officer, Slemp stated in a press release.

Sexton was convicted in 2013 on a charge of distributing a Schedule II drug and two felony counts of child neglect, according to Slemp. He had finished serving his original sentence imposed in late 2014. Sexton’s suspended sentence was conditioned upon completing five years of probation.
In June 2015, the county litter warden filed a charge alleging Sexton failed to complete a required 50 hours of community service through the litter control department.

In March 2017, Sexton’s probation officer filed a charge alleging that Sexton violated his probation by violating a protective order, failing to cooperate with probation supervision and failing to disclose his residential address.

In April 2018, the probation officer filed a violation charge alleging that Sexton again violated probation.
The fourth violation resulted from the probation officer alleging that Sexton tested positive for methamphetamine in late 2018, along with his absconding.