GORDO, Ala. — Ward 4 Columbus Councilman Pierre Beard’s trial for a host of drug-related misdemeanors in Gordo, Alabama, has been continued to Aug. 13.
Beard appeared Tuesday in Gordo Municipal Court and asked for more time to hire an attorney, Police Chief Johnny Stephenson told The Dispatch. The judge obliged, but Stephenson noted it would be the only continuance granted in this case.
Beard asked for the trial during his first appearance May 7.
Gordo police arrested Beard Dec. 1 for driving under the influence (alcohol), possession of marijuana-second offense, possession of drug paraphernalia-first offense and illegal alcohol, all misdemeanors.
Beard was pulled over for not having a tag on his vehicle. Officers reportedly saw an open container of alcohol in the car, and the traffic stop escalated.
The councilman’s passenger, Quavis Shawnterris Betts, was also arrested and charged with public intoxication, possession of marijuana-second offense, possession of drug paraphernalia-first offense and illegal alcohol.
Stephenson said Betts pleaded guilty to marijuana possession and was sentenced to two years probation. Betts has been indicted in Lowndes County for a pair of 2023 armed robberies outside Waffle House in Columbus.
As for Beard, he was convicted March 12 in Lowndes County Justice Court in a separate case for possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance, in this case one dosage unit of ecstasy, both of which are misdemeanors. He was fined $1,168.
Those charges stemmed from a Dec. 11 arrest after Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office deputies entered his home to arrest Betts, who had just been indicted by a grand jury for the Waffle House incident, and found the drugs.
Beard was first elected to the Columbus city council in a 2019 special election to fill the term of former councilman Fred Jackson, who resigned his position. In 2021, he was reelected to a full four-year term.
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