HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) — A Department of Public Works school bus driver accused of driving while impaired and drug possession will go to Adult Drug Court.
On Monday, Darryl James Spearman appeared in the Superior Court of Guam for a hearing related to his case, where he was allegedly under the influence while transporting high school students in a school bus. Spearman was allegedly found with methamphetamine by officers with the Guam Police Department, according to court documents.
At the court hearing, almost immediately after the case was called, Judge Maria Cenzon realized a deferred plea agreement was filed and the terms meant Spearman would go to Adult Drug Court to resolve his case.
As a result, Cenzon vacated Spearman’s trial date and set a change of plea hearing for Jan. 25, which is when Cenzon will be conducting Adult Drug Court proceedings. Cenzon said it will give Spearman an opportunity to see how the Adult Drug Court works.
According to the Judiciary of Guam’s website, Adult Drug Court “is a voluntary program that fast-tracks first-time drug offenders to efficiently deliver rehabilitative treatment in a judicially supervised program using sanctions and incentives.”
To qualify for the program, defendants will plead guilty, and the plea will be deferred as defendants complete the program within two years. If defendants do not complete the program, they face a felony drug conviction and up to three years of confinement at the Department of Corrections, the Judiciary website states.
Charges
Spearman was charged last May after a Southern High School employee noticed Spearman was having difficulty driving a school bus that had students in it.
According to court documents, Spearman was asked to turn off the engine and students exited. A police officer noticed Spearman was exhibiting signs of being under the influence. Spearman also failed a standardized field sobriety test.
Officers later found a Hydro Flask that had a glass pipe with suspected methamphetamine residue inside and two small baggies of meth, documents state.
Spearman was charged with possession of a Schedule II controlled substance and possession of a Schedule II controlled substance within a drug-free school zone as third-degree felonies and driving while impaired as a misdemeanor.
Darryl Spearman
