Michael Hobbs II (Photo courtesy of Baxter County Sheriff’s Office)
Michael Ransom Hobbs II of Mountain Home appeared during a session of Baxter County Circuit Court Monday and pled guilty to charges in five open criminal cases.
In July, Hobbs was sentenced to 11 years in prison after his probation was revoked on charges in two cases — one filed in 2017 and another in 2018.
On Monday, he was sentenced to 20 years in prison with 12 to serve and eight suspended. The sentences will run concurrently with each other and with the prison term handed down in the revocation cases.
It was also announced that Hobbs was dropping appeals he had filed in the two revocation cases.
Hobbs recently grew disgruntled with the sixth lawyer to handle his cases when the attorney, John Barttelt of Hardy, recommended against filing appeals in the probation revocation cases.
The appeals were filed by Hobbs acting as his own lawyer based on the same argument he has presented from the beginning – that he was not on probation and therefore the court could not find him in violation of the terms and conditions of probation.
Hobbs was represented Monday by Dan Hancock, district manager of the Public Defender’s Office for the 14th Judicial District. Hancock told the court he had talked to Barttelt and told him about the plea and that Barttelt had no objection to the deal that was struck.
The two revocation cases and the five other cases Hobbs pled to Monday were mainly drug-related.
Since the first criminal case was filed against Hobbs in 2016, other cases were opened in 2017, 2018, 2021, 2023 and 2024.
During the periods when he has acted as his own attorney, Hobbs filed more than 50 motions, most espousing legal theories more compatible with the off-the-wall thinking of groups such as the Sovereign Citizen than with more “conventional” law.
The filings include motions to dismiss, motions to suppress evidence, motions to “quash sham complaint,” motions to find prosecutorial fraud, motions to find violations of his right to a speedy trial, an “affidavit of truth” and a motion to have his cases heard by what he terms arbitrators.
Arbitrators are generally not used in criminal cases.
Hobbs filed one motion asking that his criminal cases be dismissed alleging that “the prosecution of the cases is being funded by the State of Arkansas which creates a conflict of interest for the prosecution’s team, as they are all paid by the same entity seeking to convict the defendant.”
The contention there is a “conflict of interest” is nonsensical. Prosecutors represent the state and the job of a prosecutor is to convict defendants accused of committing crimes.
In some documents he has filed with the courts, Hobbs identifies himself as “National(sic) of United States of America, non-subject, non-resident, non-citizen, native Arkansas (sic) and Natural Person.”
The wording in some of his motions is similar to that used in filings done by individuals who are members of a group known as Sovereign Citizens or who have had access to the group’s material.
Hobbs understanding of the legal system is, by his own admission, extremely limited. At the end of one document, he wrote an odd battle cry: “Let justice prevail, even if the heavens shall fall!”
Court records do not show that any action was taken on the motions he filed during the period he represented himself. Generally, if a motion is not acted on within 30 days, it can be deemed denied.
THE CASES
The open cases to which Hobbs pled are outlined below:
July 9, 2021, Hobbs was found “passed out” behind the wheel of a vehicle sitting in the driving lane instead of a parking sport. The engine was reported running, the vehicle was in gear, and Hobbs’ foot was on the brake.
Mountain Home Police officers located drugs and paraphernalia to ingest drugs. Hobbs was alleged to have had methamphetamine, marijuana and 62 Oxycodone pills.
November 23, 2021, Hobbs was arrested for selling two ounces of methamphetamine to a person working with law enforcement for $1,200.
Investigators reported the confidential source (CS) went to a predetermined location to meet Hobbs. After Hobbs arrived, the CS got into Hobbs’ vehicle and the money-for-meth exchange was made.
After some conversation about future drug deals, the CS left Hobbs’ vehicle and went to a location where the source met with investigators.
September 2021, Hobbs was again accused of selling a quantity of methamphetamine to a confidential source (CI). In this sale, Hobbs sold what he said was almost 27 grams of meth for $600.
February 6, 2023, Mountain Home police pulled a vehicle over for having expired registration. When an officer approached the car, he reported seeing a broken glass pipe commonly used to ingest methamphetamine sitting on the center console. In addition to a second glass pipe, officers also found a quantity of a substance field testing positive for methamphetamine in Hobbs’ front pants pocket.
February 18, 2024 – Hobbs was involved in another traffic stop during which drugs and drug paraphernalia were found.
Some of the charges in the five open cases were amended.
Since his first cases were filed in 2016, Hobbs’ charges have included theft of property, criminal trespassing, contempt of court and multiple drug-related charges including possession of methamphetamine and paraphernalia used to make methamphetamine.
In one case, Hobbs and a female were in a vehicle that was pulled over for a minor traffic violation, and drugs were found in the vehicle.
On Monday, Hobbs’ lawyer said his client wanted the court to know that he was totally responsible for any illegal items found in the car and that the woman was blameless.
Hobbs has made many appearances in circuit court. During one trip to the court complex, he passed out. Video from security cameras in the building show Hobbs and a female sitting in the main entry hallway.
As Hobbs talked with his public defender, his head could be seen tilting forward as the female pats him. Law officers responded and put Hobbs on the floor where chest compressions were applied and Narcan administered.
Narcan is primarily used to treat people suspected of experiencing an opioid overdose. Opioids can slow or stop a person’s breathing, leading to death. Narcan helps the user wake up and keep breathing.
WEST MEMPHIS THREE
Hobbs has written that he feels discriminated against by local police because, he alleges, they have pointed out that his uncle is the stepfather of one of the 8-year-old boys killed in West Memphis in a case widely known as the “West Memphis Three.”
The three young men charged in the 1993 murders spent 18 years behind bars before being released.
CIVIL SUIT FILED IN FEDERAL COURT
According to federal court records, Hobbs also filed a suit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas. Many individuals and entities were initially listed as defendants in the original suit.
The defendants/or entities included the Baxter County jail, Prosecuting Attorney David Ethredge, Jailer Joe Willbanks, Deputy Public Defender James Wallace, jail employees Tabitha Maze and L. Powell, Mountain Home police officer Zachary Byrd and the City of Mountain Home.
The complaints in Hobbs’ federal lawsuit were dismissed.
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