Carson City arrests: Pair booked for maintaining drug house, providing drugs to minor

Two were arrested Friday and face multiple felony charges including maintaining a drug house, providing drugs to a minor, possession of drugs and child endangerment, a Carson City sheriff’s deputy said.

Arrested were James Eugene Martin, 54, and Cindy Shaunel Chambers, 43 at a apartment-motel in the 1700 block of North Carson Street. Both also face misdemeanor charges of possession of drug paraphernalia.

According to the arrest report, a deputy was patrolling the area of the apartment-motel at around 5:50 p.m. and observed a woman recently cited for drug paraphernalia leaving a unit where drugs were suspected to be sold.

A deputy then observed a juvenile female leave the same motel-apartment room with a backpack. The juvenile stated she lived there with her mother and suspects Chambers and Martin. The deputy asked the girl if she uses drugs. The juvenile said she smokes marijuana, the arrest report states.

At around that time Chambers and Martin stepped out of the apartment to speak with a deputy. Both denied any drug use or having drugs in the room. Martin said he didn’t pay rent at the complex but did maintenance there in exchange for payment. This was confirmed by the motel owner who gave consent for Carson City Sheriff’s Office deputies to search the room for drugs, the arrest report states.

The deputy deployed his K-9, Ivo, to search the room and the juvenile’s backpack for drugs. The dog alerted positive to drugs in the backpack and all areas of the apartment, the arrest report states.

Deputies searched the backpack and the apartment. Inside the backpack was a small plastic bag with gold skulls and black background on it, which was the same kind of bag used in the paraphernalia citation of the female earlier.

Also located was clear plastic bags commonly used for carrying and packaging drugs. In the apartment the deputy searched the juvenile’s sleeping area where they found a marijuana pipe, more clear bags, and a scale with methamphetamine residue.

A deputy searched the kitchen of the apartment and found drugs and paraphernalia in the room Martin and Chambers reside in. Deputies found several hypodermic devices, smoking devices and baggies of methamphetamine inside.

One of the methamphetamine baggies had the same black and skull pattern as the baggie found in the juvenile’s backpack. Deputies suspect Martin and Chambers were providing the juvenile with drugs and paraphernalia, the arrest report states.

The general order of the apartment was in violation of fire code ordinance. There were three beds in the apartment, and structures built within the apartment making living conditions unsafe for all occupants within, the arrest report states.

Citing observed drug activity, tips and statements, there was a high amount of drug related foot traffic coming and going from the apartment. Inside, deputies located methamphetamine, marijuana and paraphernalia throughout the apartment where a child also lives. Based on the information deputies determined the apartment to be a drug house.
Bail for Martin and Chambers: $36,137 each.

In other bookings:
— A 38-year-old transient, Marcel Henry Johnson, was arrested Friday, 11:09 a.m. in the area of North Curry and Telegraph streets for felony suspicion of failure to register as a sex offender. According to the arrest report, a deputy was dispatched to the area to assist with another deputy on a subject stop.

The arresting deputy was informed by the deputy who made a subject stop that Marcel was told recently to register as a sex offender in Carson City if he was going to stay more than 48 hours. Since then, the man has been seen several times around Carson City over the past two weeks. A computer check revealed his last address where he registered was in Reno. He was booked for failure to register as a sex offender. Bail: $5,000.

All information for the crime log (unless otherwise noted) comes from the arrest reports supplied by the Carson City Sheriff's Office, and is considered by law to be public information. All subjects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The policy of Carson Now is to name anyone who is arrested for a felony offense.