By Nick Domenici
SACRAMENTO – Two drug offense defendants here apparently, according to their defense lawyers, have been model citizens while awaiting sentencing in Sacramento County Superior Court.
But despite an apparent commitment in the jail system to improve and become contributing members of society, they were denied probation and ultimately given prolonged sentences.
Defendants Martinez and Garner were both charged and sentenced for the possession, transportation, and the intention of selling methamphetamine.
The incident took place in November of 2019, when Martinez was the driver of the vehicle, and Garner was the handler of the methamphetamine. The entirety of the incident occurred at random, according to court records. 
Garner needed a transporter of the drugs, and happened to come across Martinez.
As the two attempted to deliver approximately three pounds of methamphetamine to a customer in the local area, they were later pulled over and arrested by Sacramento police.
While incarcerated, according to her defense counsel, Martinez demonstrated good habits. Her public defender, Karen Watkins, noted that her client volunteered, seven days a week, to serve meals in the cafeteria to fellow inmates. And she organized a group of women to create facial masks for the current COVID-19 pandemic, which would be donated to the community at a later time.
Although Martinez had prior convictions, most were non-violent acts. Still, she was sentenced June 5 to four years in prison without parole or probation because of her priors. In her favor, the judge granted her 325 days of credit behind bars deducted from the sentence.
Garner, the so-called mastermind of the crime, was very apologetic to the judge, promising that “my past acts will not happen again in the future.” Assistant Public Defender Karen Watkins encouraged the judge to follow the probation order with a split sentence of four years. It entailed two years in custody, and the remaining two years on parole.
Deputy District Attorney Colin Stephenson argued that Garner has a lengthy criminal history of prior drug offenses, and consequently, is ineligible for probation. The judge sentenced Garner to a four-year sentence and, like Martinez, a $300 restitution fee.
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