A judge said a Woodstock woman who was detained last week in McHenry County jail on drug charges “made several phone calls” to her roommate about “hiding narcotics still in her residence.”
Those recorded jail calls resulted in Ashley M. Starnes, 37, being charged with additional offenses, court records show.
Starnes made her first court appearance before Judge Cynthia Lamb on Wednesday on the new case. Starnes is charged with possession as well as manufacturing with intent to deliver cocaine and fentanyl, Class X felonies. She also is charged with possessing drug paraphernalia, according to the criminal complaint in McHenry County court.
Starnes initially was detained on a previous allegation Friday while also being on probation in another drug-related case, according to court records. In the case for which she was detained Friday, she is charged with possession with intent to deliver 100 to 400 grams of cocaine, a Class X felony, according to the complaint, which alleges that she had a “Ziploc bag containing 104.9 grams of a white powdery substance, which tested positive for cocaine.”
Before her probation sentencing Oct. 17, Starnes’ pretrial release was revoked for failing a court-ordered drug test stemming from a previous cocaine possession charge, according to court documents.
In denying pretrial release on Starnes’ latest case, Lamb said Starnes is “a danger” and “nothing can keep her from doing this or keep the community safe.”
But Assistant Public Defender David Giesinger pushed back, arguing for her release with conditions. He said the state has shown no proof, such as text messages, indicating that she intended to sell any drugs.
Lamb said that based on proffers signed by detectives, Starnes was in the possession of 22 grams of cocaine and items to cook, manufacture and sell the cocaine. The judge noted the recorded jailhouse phone calls allegedly instructing her roommate to hide “narcotics still in her residence.”
Lamb also noted that Starnes was on probation when charged in two new cases, and that her “criminal history revolves around drug offenses.”
:quality(70):focal(579x495:589x505)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/shawmedia/2BFVF6NMB5D4PL7RTN2AHTS6OU.jpg)