Clark County jury slams door on drug dealer

By LESLIE R. KENT | arkadelphian.com

A career drug trafficker was sentenced Tuesday to 95 years behind bars for his role in distributing cocaine, methamphetamine and synthetic marijuana known as K2.

Originally from Nashville, Arkansas, Orlando Dosia was paroled from Howard County in December 2022 and relocated to Arkadelphia; he had just served six years in prison on a combined 90-year sentence for drug-related charges in his hometown. His release from prison would be short lived, however, as only 36 days later he was arrested in a drug bust at 1318 O’Connell St.

Dosia, now 38, was on trial for one count of trafficking in controlled substances, a Class Y felony and the most serious of felony charges, and one count of possession with purpose to deliver.

After spending most of the day hearing arguments in court, the jury of seven men and five women deliberated for about an hour before returning guilty verdicts on both counts of the indictment. Following the verdict of guilt, the state presented evidence that Dosia, now 38, had previously been convicted of 17 felonies dating back to 2003 — all of them for drug offenses and the majority of which included actual drug deliveries or intent to deliver.

The jury would go on to deliberate further in the sentencing phase, handing Dosia a 95-year term in the Arkansas Department of Corrections.

The jury’s recommendation was a sentence of 55 years for the trafficking count, as well as an additional 40 years for the count of possession with purpose to deliver meth/cocaine/heroin more than 2 grams but less than 10 grams.

After the trial, 9E Prosecuting Attorney Dan Turner told arkadelphian.com that it would be 39 years before Orlando Dosia could be considered for parole, at the age of 77. Turner praised the jury’s actions. “Clark County juries have a history of stiff sentences in trials like this, and it is a critical link in keeping drug dealers out of our community,” he said. “When they see consequences like guilty verdicts with long sentences, they do not set up shop in Clark County. I believe it serves as a broader notice that the citizens of our county are not tolerant of drug dealers and the damage it does to our communities and neighborhoods. Our juries speak for us collectively and I hope that this message was load and clear.”

Jurors heard testimony from the key witness, Roy Bethell, a former agent of the Group 6 Narcotics Unit, concerning the search of the residence and subsequent interview with Dosia. The jury also considered the video interview of Dosia during which Dosia acknowledged responsibility for all of the contraband seized from the home as well as admission that he had been involved in drug distribution for a long period of time.

According to the probable cause affidavit Bethell submitted, agents had received a tip from a confidential informant that Dosia was currently selling methamphetamine from the residence on O’Connell Street. A search was conducted pursuant to a search waiver Dosia had signed as a condition of his parole supervision. During the search, officers discovered approximately 216 grams of methamphetamine, more than 7 grams of cocaine, large quantities of what officers suspected was synthetic marijuana, as well as drug paraphernalia including horse tranquilizers and digital scales.

Bethell testified that several of the substances were packaged in plastic bags and appeared to each contain about the same amount which Bethell characterized as a sign of preparation for sale.

Since the case was opened, 9E Circuit Judge Blake Batson has granted 10 continuances — most of them at the request of the defendant’s attorney, Brent Miller of Hot Springs. Miller was assigned by Batson as a public defender after local public defenders recused or did not qualify to try Class Y felony drug cases.

Miller’s efforts to create doubt in the minds of the jury included two attempts to introduce information on Bethell’s history in law enforcement. Each time the question was asked of Bethell, who was one of only three witnesses called to testify, the prosecutor objected and Judge Batson called both attorneys to the bench for a short conference. Each time Miller withdrew the question and proceeded with other questions attempting to impeach Bethell’s methods of investigating, gathering evidence, choice of evidence photographs, paperwork and specifically the agent’s decision not to seize the duffel bag that contained some of the packaged substances. Miller pointed out that the K2 found upstairs was taken with the container it was packed in, and asked why not the duffel bag. Bethell’s answer was that it was the drugs in it that were illegal, not the duffel bag itself.

Miller posed a question to the jury – why would the defendant willingly allow a search of his residence knowing that illegal drugs were present?

It was apparent that the prosecutor was well prepared to debunk the issues presented by the defense, particularly Dosia’s lack of resistance to the search. Turner explained how a search waiver works and that the defendant likely new the waiver he signed made resistance futile. Turner was apparently effective in presenting other issues raised by the defense, from a different perspective that highlighted the end result and downplayed the odd investigative methods used by Agent Bethell. 

The second witness called by the prosecution was the chemist who handled the samples Bethell sent to the Arkansas Crime Lab. As an expert witness, Jacob Kordsmeier explained the procedures by which the evidence was logged in, documented, analyzed and secured at the crime lab. Miller tried to punch holes in Kordsmeier’s testimony with questions about the timeline for evidence examination, the possibility of sample degradation and the lab’s security procedures.

The final prosecution witness was Lt. Russell Ursery, an investigator with the CCSO. Ursery testified about his experience and the part he played in assisting Bethell with the search. In questioning Ursery, the defense attorney again zeroed in on Bethell’s methods and his claim to have found most of the evidence, taken all the photographs and decided what to seize. Ursery pointed out the Bethell was the lead investigator on the case.

Dosia was also convicted of three additional charges of possession of cocaine with intent to deliver in Howard County on February 13, 2008 which were ultimately reversed on appeal based on search and seizure issues. 

Following the January 20, 2023 arrest, Dosia was released on a bond of $90,000 and was subsequently arrested in Arkadelphia on March 19, 2023, for additional drug offenses. This case is currently pending in Clark County Circuit Court awaiting a trial setting. Following his arrest on March 19, Dosia’s bond was revoked by Judge Batson, and Dosia had remained in custody of the Clark County Sheriff’s Department up to Tuesday’s trial.

Following formal sentencing, Dosia was immediately remanded to the custody of Sheriff Jason Watson for transport to the Arkansas Department of Corrections.