CLEARFIELD – A Coatsville man facing drug sale charges and other offenses for harassing a woman he believed knew the location of his ex-girlfriend/ex-partner pleaded guilty Monday in Clearfield County Court.
Joseph Nicholas Trotman III, 33, pleaded guilty to two counts of criminal conspiracy/possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia in one case and recklessly endangering another person and possession of drug paraphernalia in a second case.
President Judge Fredric J. Ammerman sentenced him to 135 days to two years in jail and two years consecutive probation. He warned Trotman that if he comes back in court for a probation violation, he would be sent to state prison.
Trotman was one of three people involved in the sale of $800 worth of marijuana Dec. 10, 2015 to an undercover officer, according to the affidavit of probable cause.
The second case stems from incidents July 7 in Osceola Mills when Trotman argued with a woman in the parking lot of a convenience store who would not tell him where his ex-girlfriend and co-defendant, Nicole Marie Bumbarger, was staying and then followed the victim, terrifying her and a woman who offered her a ride.
Prior to sentencing, Trotman addressed the court stating he was trying to get his life on track and admitting he had a drinking problem. He said that he does not have a clear memory of following and harassing the woman.
Douglas Campbell, attorney for Trotman, told Ammerman that Trotman admitted to him that he was embarrassed by this incident, which is something Campbell doesn’t usually hear from his clients.
Ammerman commented that Trotman was lucky he wasn’t shot for his behavior that evening.
According to the criminal complaint in the drug case, Kenneth William Emigh, 37, Hawk Run, allegedly took the undercover officer to a shed in a backyard in Osceola Mills where the officer met Trotman.
Before completing the sale, Trotman told the officer they had to wait until “she” got out of the bathroom. He showed him a jar containing marijuana. He commented that this is what the officer was buying, but he had to wait until “the boss” got back, police said.
At that time, a woman later confirmed to be Bumbarger entered the shed, introduced herself and shook the undercover officer’s hand. The officer asked if the price was $800 for the two ounces of marijuana and she allegedly confirmed that was correct. After the officer handed her the money, the man handed him the marijuana, according to the complaint. Both Emigh and Bumbarger are also facing drug charges for this incident.
The second affidavit details how Trotman argued with the victim in a parking lot in Decatur Township before telling her he was not going to give her a ride home. She responded that she would just walk home.
After Trotman appeared to be driving away, another woman who saw the argument asked the victim if she needed a ride, and she confirmed she did. When the victim got into the witness’ car, Trotman’s vehicle backed up, squealed its tires and attempted to block their vehicle from leaving the parking lot.
After some time, she was able to trick him into moving in a different direction as she drove away. Trotman followed the women, staying close to their vehicle. He tried to cut her off numerous times, tried to go around her and at one point, came directly at her in an attempt to strike her vehicle, police said.
After they arrived at a trailer court, the police were called. The victim explained to police that Trotman had dated her neighbor, Bumbarger. They broke up and Bumbarger was now involved with someone else. Trotman had been trying to find her.
The victim said she was in fear of Bumbarger and her new boyfriend so she refused to tell Trotman where Bumbarger was living. This is what they were fighting about at the store. This victim said she felt “like she was in a movie” when he was following and trying to get them off the roadway.
While police were trying to locate Trotman he came to the trailer court and tried to fight with the victim’s husband. After he was told to leave, he drove through their yard causing damage to the grass and threatened to burn their trailer down.
The victim said Trotman was headed to Winburne where he thought Bumbarger was staying. Police staked out the route Trotman would need to travel to get there, and located Trotman in a parking lot where he was taken into custody.
