James “Bubba” Early was sentenced by 402nd District Judge Brad McCampbell to 25 years in state prison and a $5,000 fine on Monday, Aug. 28.

Early was convicted of manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance penalty group 1 four grams or more but less than 200 grams on June 6.

During the sentencing hearing, Early admitted that in 2013 he was convicted of assault bodily injury family violence with previous conviction, for which he also spent time in the state penitentiary

In the late evening March 20, 2022, Sgt. Jaclyn Skinner and Deputy Matthew Cooper of the Wood County Sheriff’s Dept. were in Yantis attempting to serve a warrant for a wanted person.

 When they arrived at the designated location, they encountered Early and another individual. Early immediately threw a case full of methamphetamine on the ground, which was recovered by the officers.

At trial, it was shown that the methamphetamine in Early’s possession was at least 5.45 grams. Additionally, Early admitted that he was at the location to deliver the methamphetamine to another individual. 

Wood County District Attorney Angela Albers said, “I appreciate the diligence of Sgt. Skinner and Deputy Cooper for their work on this case. James Early is a lifelong criminal who was dealing drugs in our county. Fortunately, we were able to get drugs out of the hands of a dangerous drug dealer and keep it off of our streets, protecting the people of Wood County.