A 48-year-old Bulverde resident, Kristopher Burkholder, was sentenced to two years of probation and a $1,500 fine for possession of methamphetamine, which he continues to claim belonged to someone else.
Burkholder was found guilty of the 2019 charge by a jury last month and went before Fourth Administrative Judicial Region Judge Sid Harle, who was sitting in for 451st District Court Judge Kirsten Cohoon, last week for his sentencing. The prosecution sought a harsher punishment, stating Burkholder refused to take responsibly for his actions.
“Well, just I mean common sense wise, if you’re on bond for possession of methamphetamine that is not yours, and you deny use of the substance, wouldn’t it be wise not to test positive for methamphetamine?” Harle asked the defendant.
While the prosecution sought a roughly three-month jail stay, the judge opted to deny the jail term, saying if anything was going to “teach Burkholder a lesson” it would’ve been the jury trial process. However, Harle warned Burkholder that if he were to pick up another charge, the presiding judge would notice that he was offered a break on this sentence, adding they will not be as lenient.
In all, Burkholder spent a total of three days in the Kendall County jail for the charge. Harle called the defendant back up after his sentence was handed down, letting Burkholder know he has 30 days to file an appeal of either his conviction or sentence.
Harle noted that if he files, his probation may be suspended, adding that many defendants opt to continue probation during the appellate process in case the appeal is lost. If his probation is suspended, and he loses an appeal, his probation will start up upon the appellate court’s decision.
This, however, is not Burkholder’s first time before a judge on criminal charges, as he has criminal convictions, dismissals and pending criminal charges spanning several counties.
In 2004, Burkholder was arrested and charged with theft by check with a value between $20 and $500. However, the case was dismissed in October of 2005. Burkholder was charged and convicted of the same crime in Comal County in the same year. He was convicted of the Class C misdemeanor of writing a bad check in the neighboring county in 2005 after being charged in November of 2004.
Again, Burkholder was convicted in Hays County for writing a hot check in 2004. He pleaded guilty to the charge in September of 2005.
Also in 2019, Burkholder was arrested and charged with theft of property valued between $150,000 and $300,000 after Comal County deputies recovered 22 stolen vehicles found on his property. He was indicted in July 2020 and Comal County court records show his case has been reset nearly 20 times. His last hearing was July 6.
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