By Liz Shepherd
InkFreeNews

Autumn Lynn Snare

WARSAW — A woman involved in a local burglary will serve a three-year sentence through Kosciusko County’s community corrections program.

Autumn Lynn Snare, 20, Leo, was charged with burglary, a level 5 felony; and possession of methamphetamine, a level 6 felony. Four additional criminal charges were dismissed as part of a plea agreement.

Snare was sentenced in Kosciusko Superior Court One on Monday, March 21.

On Aug. 2, 2021, a Kosciusko County Sheriff’s deputy responded to a burglary at Pack Rat Storage. The deputy spoke to a man who witnessed people stealing from a storage unit. The man believed a vehicle he saw there was suspicious due to previous incidents.

According to court documents, the witness saw two people near the suspicious vehicle start throwing items into the vehicle. The witness later saw the vehicle stopped in a yard at Vineyard Community Church.

The Kosciusko County officer at the scene walked around the vehicle and noticed a bag containing methamphetamine on the driver’s seat. The vehicle was searched and a second bag containing methamphetamine was discovered. An orange chainsaw, a box labeled “hats,” as well as a new, unopened blanket and a box labeled “kitchen pots and pans” were also found in the vehicle.

A black lock with rubber around the locking mechanism was laying on the vehicle’s driver’s side door jamb. The lock looked as if it had been cut off.

A KCSO deputy spoke with the owner of the storage unit that was burglarized. The owner described the lock that was on his unit. His description matched that of the lock found in the vehicle.

Officers were later notified about a woman going door-to-door, asking for water and a place to stay. Police found a woman on Southshore Drive, who was later identified as Snare.

Snare told officers that she and her boyfriend at the time, Terry L. Miller, Fort Wayne, drove to Pack Rat Storage. She said the gates were open and they drove inside. Snare also told officers that Miller took a chainsaw and she helped load a storage box into their vehicle. When asked about the drugs found in the vehicle, Snare said they belonged to her and Miller.

There is currently an active arrest warrant for Miller, who is facing five criminal charges in this case. Miller failed to appear for a pretrial conference in October 2021.

During court proceedings, Defense Attorney John Barrett said Snare has been accepted into the county’s community corrections program. He noted that Snare’s employer submitted a letter on her behalf. Barrett told the court that Miller was a very bad influence on Snare’s life and that Snare is remorseful for her conduct.

Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Joseph Sobek said Snare’s personal character hadn’t really been fleshed out by the state since she didn’t assist with completing a pre-sentence investigation report.

Kosciusko Superior Court One Judge Karin McGrath said Snare was contacted multiple times about completing a PSI and told her that its completion should have been her main priority.

For burglary, Snare received a four-year sentence at the Indiana Department of Correction, with three years executed and one year suspended on probation. She also received a one-year DoC sentence for methamphetamine possession. Both counts will run concurrently, or at the same time.

Snare is allowed to serve her executed sentence through Kosciusko County Community Corrections. She must report to the Kosciusko County Jail by April 1 if she is not hooked up in the program.

Snare must also pay $109.25 in restitution.

“I certainly hope that this is a wake-up call for you,” said Judge McGrath.