Eleven first-time offenders in the criminal justice system were placed in Carbon County's Accelerated Rehabilitation Disposition probation program recently by Judge Steven R. Serfass.

If a person successfully completes all conditions of the program, their record his wiped clean. However, if they fail to complete the program, or are revoked from it, then they will face trial on all pending charges. A person does not admit guilt in entering the program.All were placed for a year, unless otherwise noted.Cassandra Rose Estrada, 22, of Fountain Hill, was placed for two years, but not until Serfass questioned the placement.Estrada was charged by Lehighton police with aggravated assault and related offenses for an incident on May 29 at 211 N. 11th St. at the Blue Mountain Health Systems Lehighton Campus.She caused a disturbance in the emergency room area and allegedly threatened a nurse and police. Serfass said he would approve the placement based on the fact that the two victims agreed with the placement.She was assessed $450 for the cost of the program and must get a drug and alcohol evaluation and follow any recommendation for treatment, zero tolerance imposed on D&A use, and must render 100 hours of community service.Jonathan A. Hill, 28, of Lehighton, was placed for two years on aggravated assault charge. He was arrested by Franklin Township police for an incident on Dec. 13, 2013, at 705 Green St. with Katelyn Walsh as the listed victim.Serfass also questioned this placement based on the police allegations that he threatened the life of the victim. The court was told the victim agreed with the placement.Hill was assessed $450 and ordered to get both mental health and D&A evaluations, zero tolerance on D&A use, and have no contact with the victim or her family.Nicholas Donald Buckingham, 22, of Tunkhannock, was placed for two years on a charge of terroristic threats and related counts. He was arrested on May 30 by state police at Lehighton for an incident at Penn's Peak along Maury Road in Penn Forest Township. He was accused of threatening an employee of the entertainment venue and a state trooper.Again Serfass wanted the assurance that the victims agreed with the placement.He was assessed $650 and ordered to get a D&A evaluation, attend and complete anger management counseling, and render 100 hours of community service.Jennifer Lynn Billings, 39, of Lehighton, was placed on a driving under the influence charge. She was arrested on Oct. 28, 2013, by state police at Lehighton along Summit Avenue in Lehighton. No blood test results were listed in the complaint.She was assessed $650 and ordered to get a D&A evaluation and render 50 hours of community service.Linda E. Fink, 40, of Slatington, was placed on a charge of false reports. She was arrested on May 2 by Lehighton police.She was assessed $450 and ordered to render 50 hours of community service.Paul Clayton Kelley, Lehighton, was placed for nine months on a DUI charge. He was arrested on April 20 by state police at Lehighton along Maury Road in Penn Forest Township. Given a test, the result was 0.09 BAC.He assessed $450 and ordered to render 50 hours of community service.Russell William Pearl, 43, of Harrisburg, was placed on a DUI charge. He was arrested on June 21 by Mahoning Township police along Mauch Chunk Street. He refused a blood test and will lose his license for a year for the refusal.He was assessed $600 and ordered to get a D&A evaluation, have his license suspended for 60 days, and render 50 hours of community service.Jill Kay Halada, 53, of Palmerton, was placed on a DUI charge. She was arrested on May 11 along Route 248 in Lower Towamensing Township by state police at Lehighton. Given a test, the result showed the presence of a controlled substance.She was assessed $600 and ordered to get a D&A evaluation, license suspended for 60 days, and render 50 hours of community service.Dakota H. Hartman, 22, of Lehighton, was placed on a DUI charge. He was arrested on Feb. 23 along Route 209 in Lehighton by state police at Lehighton. Given a test, the result was 0.17 BAC.He was assessed $650 and ordered to get a D&A evaluation, have his license suspended for 60 days, and render 50 hours of community service.Keri L. McArdle, 29, was placed in two pending cases. She was placed on a DUI charge. She was arrested on Feb. 12 along Susquehanna Street by Jim Thorpe police. Given a test, it showed the presence of a controlled substance.She was arrested for attempting to acquire a controlled substance by misrepresentation filed by Weatherly police. She took medication for patients at Weatherwood, where she was employed at the time.Serfass questioned if the taken medication had any negative effects on the patients involved. He was told it did not. He then said he would approve the placement.She was placed for two years on each count, running concurrently, and assessed $600 and ordered to get a D&A evaluation, zero tolerance for D&A use, license suspended for 60 days, render a total of 200 hours of community service, and make restitution of $45.70 to Weatherwood.Paul Douglas Weber, 51, of Lehighton, was placed on a DUI charge. He was arrested on Jan. 26 by state police at Lehighton along Bridge Street in Weissport. Given a test, the result showed the presence of a controlled substance.He was assessed $650 and ordered to get a D&A evaluation, have his license suspended for 60 days, and render 50 hours of community service.Each defendant must also pay court costs, which average about $1,000, and pay a $50 per month supervision fee while in the program.