TEXARKANA, Texas - A man accused of selling methamphetamine in the Texarkana area pleaded not guilty to several felonies this week in federal court.
Roderick Tyrone Thurman, 40, appeared Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline Craven for arraignment on a three-count indictment. With the help of Longview, Texas, lawyer Greg Waldron, Thurman entered pleas of not guilty to conspiracy to conspiracy to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine and to two counts which accuse Thurman of possessing with the intent to distribute more than 50 grams of meth on Dec. 13, 2018, and Jan. 24, 2019.
Thurman also had an initial appearance on a motion to revoke his supervised release in a federal case involving similar allegations.
At the time of his arrest in April 2019, Thurman was serving a five-year term of federal supervised release for meth distribution. Thurman was sentenced Aug. 28, 2015, to 41 months in federal prison with five years of supervised release to follow as part of a plea agreement inked in the same federal court where Thurman's new charges are pending.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Hornok filed a motion seeking to revoke Thurman's supervised release in April 2019. That motion is still pending.
When a defendant's supervised release is revoked they may be ordered to serve additional time in federal prison.
The outcome of Thurman's newest case could be impacted by his older one. Hornok filed a notice in the new case seeking to enhance the punishment range Thurman faces to a minimum of 15 years to life in prison. According to the notice, Thurman also faces the possibility of a fine up to $20 million and a term of supervised release of at least 10 years.
Thurman's new case is set for jury selection March 23 before U.S. District Judge Robert Schroeder III. No hearings are currently scheduled in the older case. Thurman remains in federal custody.