District Court Wrap: Draining the Wawa ATM

The following cases came before Judge Darlington in District Court 15-2-5 on Wednesday, Dec. 14. This is not a comprehensive list of all cases heard that day.

Earl Eden, 62, of Avondale, who failed to appear , was led into court with hands shackled. His first charge, a DUI in East Whiteland, was continued pending labwork. In the other case, in which he is accused of harassing a Willistown woman and her family, the prosecutor consolidated the 26 harassment charges into a single one and added a charge of stalking. The woman testified that Eden had shown up at her home while intoxicated and had called her over 100 times, leaving vulgar voicemails. Judge Chester Darlington ordered him held for trial. She said Eden complained about not being welcomed into, or financially supported by, her family.

Cindy Coover, 53, of Malvern Borough, was in court on charges of DUI and careless driving. She waived a preliminary hearing and requested Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD), a program designed for first-time DUI offenders.

Mitchell Clark, 28, of Remsen, N.Y., was brought into court shackled and wearing red a red Allegheny County Jail outfit on charges including identity theft and related offenses. A Willistown woman testified that she'd let Clark and two individuals stay at her house and do odd jobs, after her son had falsely told her he knew them. She suspected Clark had taken her debit card and withdrawn more than $8,100 from her account. Detective Stephen Jones of the Willistown Police testified that he had reviewed surveillance tape from a Paoli Wawa. The tape showed a man, whom the victim identified as the defendent, making eight withdrawals of $600 each. Judge Darlington ordered Clark held for trial on all charges.

Frazer resident Delvin Galvin, 24, failed to appear on a DUI charge incurred in East Goshen on Nov. 6. Galving allegedly did not have a license at the time of the offense. The judge issued a bench warrant.

Nancy Booker, 47, of Paoli, faced charges of theft. She agreed to pay $363 to the owners of Myofacial Release in Willistown and have no criminal conduct for 90 days, per an agreement reached with the prosecutor. She was released on her own recognizance.

David Carty, 52, of Malvern Borough, was in court for a simple assault charge. Malvern Police Sgt. Lloyd Douglas testified that, while transporting a DUI suspect to Paoli Hospital, he found Carty's girlfriend crying in front of the Emergency Room entrance. She claimed to have been choked by Carty, and had minor bruising on her neck and wrote out a statement saying as much. On the stand, however, the visibly shaken girlfriend described the incident as an argument that had gotten out of hand. "No, I don't want to pursue the case. I'm all in one piece. I'm good," she said. Her request notwithstanding, the judge ordered Carty held for trial on all charges and set bail at $5,000 unsecured.