UNLICENSED WELL DRILLER CONVICTED AND JAILED FOR VIOLATION OF PROBATION

Attorney General J. Joseph Curran, Jr. announced today that John E. Branham, 72, of Port Republic, Maryland, had his probation revoked and was ordered to serve a 90-day sentence for violating the terms of his probation. The Defendant was on three-years probation as a result of a July 2003 conviction in the District Court of Maryland for Anne Arundel County for practicing well drilling without a license.

The Honorable Megan B. Johnson reinstated the Defendant’s 90-day suspended sentence after she found that the Defendant violated the terms of his probation by continuing to practice well drilling without a license. The Defendant was convicted in August 2005 by a jury in Anne Arundel County of drilling a well without a permit and practicing well drilling without a license. Those convictions violated the terms of the probation imposed after his conviction in 2003. The Defendant is currently serving a 90-day jail sentence in Charles County for a violation of probation for a similar offense. Branham, whose license was revoked in 1999, has been convicted of well drilling violations on four occasions since 2003.

The Environment Crimes Unit of the Attorney General’s Office prosecuted the original case and the violation of probation, with the assistance of the Maryland Department of the Environment and the Maryland State Police.

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