December has been a busy month in the court of District Judge Stephen Bayer of Tamaqua.

Preliminary hearings scheduled for Dec. 2 resulted in two cases held over for court trial, seven defendants waived their hearings, three cases were dismissed and law enforcement withdrew the charges in five cases.Jeremy Snyder, 23, of 27 N. Railroad St., Tamaqua, elected to have his preliminary hearing on charges of driving under the influence, following too closely, driving at an unsafe speed and reckless driving.The charges were filed by Tamaqua patrolman Joseph Krebs following a Sept. 24 traffic stop and were all held over for trial in the Schuylkill County Courts.Snyder was released on his own recognizance.Jerry G. Adrey Jr., 43, of 526 W. South St., Mahanoy City, failed to appear in court for his hearing on charges of theft by unlawful taking and receiving stolen property. The charges were filed by Tamaqua patrolman Michael Hobbs following a July 21 incident.A warrant could be issued for Adrey's arrest.Cases waivedCarmen Rinaldo Beltrami, 18, of 413 W. Green St., West Hazleton, was one of the seven defendants who opted to wait until trial in county court instead of participating in a preliminary hearing. Charges of DUI were sent to court, while charges related to underage drinking and operating unsafe equipment were dismissed by the arresting officer, McAdoo patrolman William Curilla. The charges were filed following a traffic stop on Aug. 4.Beltrami was released on his own recognizance.Sarah Hutta, 27, of 142 E. Sherman St., McAdoo, was charged with driving under the combined influence of a controlled substance and alcohol, and for driving with no rear lights.The charges were filed by Curilla following a June 21 traffic stop in McAdoo.She was released on her own recognizance.David Ritsick, 53, of 314 E. Blaine St., McAdoo, had charges of kidnapping, simple assault, false imprisonment and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle waived to court. A charge of stalking was withdrawn by the arresting officer, Kline Township Chief John Petrilla. The charges stem from an Oct. 2 incident.Ritsick was released on $100,000 bail.Nicholas J. Yatsula, 33, of 624 Mountain Top Terrace, McAdoo, will have his day in court on charges of DUI and improper use of turn signals. He was charged by Curilla following a Sept. 6 traffic stop.Yatsula was released on his own recognizance.Travis James Ziolko, 29, of 30 E. Market St., Sheppton, faces charges of DUI of a controlled substance (four counts) and having an obstructed vehicle window. The charges were filed by Curilla after an Aug. 22 traffic stop.Ziolko was released on his own recognizance.Kenneth A. Hertzog, 55, of 10 Snyder Ave., McAdoo, was charged with DUI, careless driving, reckless driving and failure to notify police after a May 4 accident in Rush Township. The charges were filed by patrolman Adam Sinton.Hertzog was released on his own recognizance.Matthew Dutzer, 25, of 39 James St., Kelayres, faces charges of burglary, criminal trespass, theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property and theft by deception.The charges were filed by Kline Township patrolman Justin Farley following an Oct. 1 incident.Dutzer was released on $10,000 unsecured bail.Charges withdrawn/dismissedDefendants who had the charges against them withdrawn were: Kelly Elizabeth Gilhool of McAdoo, Paul Sholtis of Drums, Maximillian W. Schmidt of Tamaqua, Alana Morales-Leon of Tamaqua and Joseph Cierlitsky of Tamaqua.Charges were dismissed for Paul Sholtis of McAdoo, Eldon W. St. Peter of Tamaqua, Ciera Zvorsky of Pottsville and Ralph P. Bolletino of Tamaqua.