April 6, 2023
By: Dwayne Page
A day long jury trial of a man charged with sale and delivery of heroin and methamphetamine ended in a conviction Thursday in DeKalb County Criminal Court.
A jury of six men and six women found 42-year-old Michael Chad Owens guilty as charged in the four-count indictment including one count each of sale and delivery of heroin and one count each of sale and delivery of methamphetamine. The jury also fined Owens a total of $90,000 including $40,000 for sale of heroin, $15,000 for delivery of heroin, $20,000 for sale of methamphetamine, and $15,000 for delivery of heroin.
Owens was among several people indicted in June 2020 as a result of an undercover drug investigation conducted by the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Department.
“From the testimony at trial of Chief Deputy Brian Williams and Detective Stephen Barrett, they were contacted by a confidential informant which they have used in the past and she indicated to them that she had access to Owens and that he was selling heroin and methamphetamine. At that point they used that confidential informant to conduct a controlled purchase of heroin on June 21, 2019 and the methamphetamine on June 25, 2019,” said Evan Smith, Assistant District Attorney of the 13th Judicial District who prosecuted this case.
After the jury’s announcement, the presiding trial judge Wesley Bray revoked Owens’ bond and remanded him to the custody of the sheriff pending the outcome of a sentencing hearing set for June 20. Owens will remain in jail at least until then and perhaps a lot longer. Although he has not had a long history of drug offenses, Owens is a convicted felon in at least five prior burglaries and one theft case.
Because of these crimes and his criminal past, Owens could get up to a total of 45 years in prison, according to Smith.
“The sale and delivery of a schedule I narcotic (heroin) is a B felony and with Owens’ range as a persistent offender he is looking at serving at least 45% of a 20-30 sentence for the B felonies but these two charges (sale and delivery) will most likely merge because it was a sell and delivery in one transaction, “Smith told WJLE.
“As to the other counts, sale and delivery of a schedule II narcotic (methamphetamine), that is a C felony. In the persistent range, that is 10-15 years. Because of his persistent status and violent criminal history, Owens is looking at a potential consecutive sentence. That is certainly what we will be asking for at the sentencing hearing,” said Smith.
Owens was represented at trial by attorney Mingy Ball.