Prisoner pleads to meth possession

Donald Picklesimer III with his attorney, Al Swanson, Jr.

By Allison Scarbrough. Contributing Editor.

LUDINGTON — A 24-year-old Ravenna man serving a two to 15 year prison sentence for operating/maintaining a meth lab pleaded guilty in 51st Circuit Court Tuesday, Dec. 8, to methamphetamine possession.

Donald Ray Picklesimer III, faces a term of one-and-a-half to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty as charged. In exchange for his plea, his second-offense habitual offender designation was dismissed. The designation would have elevated the maximum term to 15 years, said Mason County Prosecutor Paul Spaniola.

His term will run concurrently to the prison term he is currently serving, which is two to 15 years. Picklesimer was sentenced in Newaygo County last May stemming from an August 2014 offense, according to the Offender Tracking Information System (OTIS).

His Mason County conviction stems from an Aug. 19, 2013 incident, according to his testimony Monday, which resulted in his eventual arrest by the State, Sheriffs’, Chiefs’ Enforcement of Narcotics Team (SSCENT).

Sentencing is set for Feb. 2 at 3 p.m.