Man to serve 11 more months in jail

Recommend This Print This Get E-mail News Alerts Buy Photos/Page Reprints * Breaking News If local news is breaking and you know about it: * Call Us: 800-296-5137 * E-mail Us * Upload Your Photos

By Alex Bridges-abridges@nvdaily.com

WINCHESTER -- A city man with a history of violence toward authority figures who recently served time for a courtroom outburst must spend 11 more months in jail.

Mark Adam Syme, 19, appeared in Frederick County Circuit Court on Tuesday with his attorney, Christopher Collins, for a hearing on an alleged violation of probation. Syme wore a yellow uniform issued to inmates incarcerated at Northwestern Regional Adult Detention Center who have had confrontations or other problems with jail officers, according to officials.

Authorities had accused Syme of possessing cocaine on Oct. 26 at a city residence.
This violated a condition of Syme's two-year supervised probation imposed after he served time for assaulting a law enforcement officer, according to the commonwealth.
Syme received a two-year prison term, with all but six months suspended, for committing the Sept. 26, 2009, offense.

Collins and Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Dennis McLoughlin told Judge John Prosser they had reached an agreement in the probation matter: Syme would admit to the violation as alleged and the court would revoke 11 months of the defendant's previously suspended term. Under the agreement the court ended Syme's probation.
Syme had one year and one month of jail time hanging over his head, according to Collins. Prosser said Syme would receive credit for time served.

Syme recently served 10 days in the regional jail after Prosser found him in contempt three times for an outburst in his court. Prosser later suspended two of the 10-day terms.
The outburst occurred Jan. 6 after Collins asked the judge to postpone the probation revocation hearing, originally set for that day.

Authorities say Syme continued being defiant and, while held in the basement of the courthouse awaiting a return to the jail, he stopped up a sink, allowing water to overflow and cause damage.

Syme now is charged in Winchester General District Court with misdemeanor destruction of property and faces an adjudication hearing today.

A grand jury in Winchester Circuit Court indicted Syme on the cocaine possession charge
on Jan. 18. Carter Foulds has been appointed to represent Syme on this charge.

However, two days before the indictment, Syme struck a jail officer who did not report any injuries from the incident, according to Superintendent Bruce Conover. The superintendent acknowledged Jan. 20 the jail has had issues with Syme.

"He's been a difficult inmate," Conover said.

A judge in Frederick County General District Court on March 2 found Syme guilty of two misdemeanor counts of assaulting a teacher or principal and sentenced him to 90 days in jail with all but four days suspended. The judge also sentenced Syme to 30 days in jail, all suspended, for committing one count of misdemeanor destruction of property. Syme had pleaded not guilty to the three charges, which authorities say occurred Sept. 4, 2009.