(BEDFORD) – Judge John Plummer III is presiding over the trial of 43-year-old Scott Afanador, of Bloomington. Afanador is facing charges of dealing meth over 10 grams, possession of meth over 28 grams, and unlawful possession of a syringe.
Sam Arp. is prosecuting the case for the State. Denise Turner and Public Defender Bruce Andis are representing Afanador.
The trial is scheduled to conclude on Friday and can be viewed at this link.
Afanador was arrested in November 2019 along with three other people when a Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department deputy stopped the driver of an SUV on State Road 37 at the Sinclair service station for a traffic violation.
During that search, officers found a crystal substance that tested positive for meth, a hand-rolled marijuana cigarette, 110 grams of meth, syringes, and fentanyl test kits.
Also arrested were 36-year-old Christopher Lynch, of Vincennes; 28-year-old Tiffany Purtlebaugh, of Bloomington; and 40-year-old Timothy Whaley, of Bedford. They are facing the same charges as Afanador.
Afanador says the drugs were not his but someone else’s in the vehicle.
Indiana State Police Lab Supervisor Elizabeth Griffin testified Wednesday afternoon. She confirmed that police did find meth in the SUV. The defense then asked if DNA or fingerprints were taken off any of the items recovered in the vehicle. She replied ‘no’ and said no such tests were requested.
“The only test was for a drug analysis,” Griffin commented.
Timothy Whaley was next to testify. He was on the stand only for a brief time.
His first question was how he met Afanador. He replied ‘in jail.’ That answer prompted the defense to ask for a mistrial.
Judge Plummer recessed to take the request under consideration.
Judge Plummer said he understood why the request was asked for but denied the request.
“I warn the state they are treading dangerous waters as it is,” said Judge Plummer. “We need to cure any problems caused by the last witness’s (Whaley) statements. Be careful with your witness… get control of your witnesses.”
The jury was told to disregard any statement that Whaley made about where he met Afanador.
The jury was then dismissed for the day. Testimony will resume this morning.
