A Pope County juvenile probation officer is in jail after allegedly selling methamphetamine to an undercover informant Monday night.
Chris Schmidt, 32, of Dover was arrested after authorities said he sold meth to the informant at the parking lot of Russellville’s Wal-Mart around 10:30 p.m., officers familiar with the arrest confirmed Tuesday. Fifth Judicial District prosecutor David Gibbons of Clarksville said he intends to file delivery of a controlled substance charges against Schmidt, along with charges of possessing meth with intent to deliver and possession of marijuana.
Schmidt is expected to receive bond and probable cause hearings in front of District Judge Don Bourne today. Delivering a controlled substance is a Class Y felony punishable by 10-40 years or life in prison.
As a juvenile probation officer, Schmidt is responsible for monitoring the progress of children convicted of crimes through the county’s juvenile court system, including those convicted of drug offenses. Gibbons said there was no evidence to indicate Schmidt had sold any drugs to those under his supervision, however.
Gibbons and Pope County Sheriff Jay Winters both confirmed Schmidt was under investigation by authorities at the time he was arrested.
“I consider this a case of the highest priority,” Gibbons told The Courier. “I can’t think of a much bigger breach or trust and breach of duty.”
Circuit Judge Ken Coker Jr. of Russellville, Schmidt’s supervisor, addressed the seriousness of the alleged incident while stopping short of discussing Schmidt’s present employment status.
“We’re going to take the appropriate action and deal with this,” Coker said. “I’m going to deal with it appropriately and I’m going to deal with it immediately.”
Gibbons said Schmidt would likely be charged with endangering the welfare of a minor as well because he left his 9-year-old son home alone while he was making the drug transaction.
Other reports
Police documents obtained by The Courier also indicate Monday’s arrest was not the first time Schmidt had been accused of committing a crime.
Schmidt is listed as a suspect on a May 10, 2003 Russellville police report alleging he was involved in a disturbance with his estranged wife. Russellville police officer Chris Koch said he arrived at the woman’s residence around 11:30 p.m. and discovered Schmidt in an intoxicated state — Schmidt registered .23 on a portable alcohol breath detection machine, according to the report.
Schmidt admitted to drinking six or seven beers and seven or eight shots of vodka at that time, according to Koch. The report did not say what action the officer took with Schmidt.
About 30 minutes later, Koch was again dispatched to the same residence because Schmidt was allegedly knocking on the woman’s windows. Schmidt left as the officer arrived as a passenger in a vehicle driven by an unidentified person, according to the report.
His estranged wife told police Schmidt had been at the residence for approximately two hours and had kept her from using the telephone to call authorities, although she was eventually able to lock herself in a room with their child and call 911.
On Aug. 14, 2004, Schmidt’s girlfriend contacted Pope County Sheriff’s authorities and reported Schmidt had kicked her several times on the right leg.
Schmidt was never arrested for his alleged involvement in either incident.