Dec. 22—Conasauga Judicial Circuit Judge Jim Wilbanks sentenced a Chattanooga man who pled guilty to several offenses earlier this year — including two counts of armed robbery — to 15 years in Whitfield Superior Court on Tuesday, Dec. 19.

Defendant Covonto Demond Upshaw, 20, also pled guilty to two counts of false imprisonment, three counts of aggravated assault and two counts of possession of a firearm and/or knife during the commission of a crime or attempted crime in April.

“The matter has been continued for sentencing pending the resolution of his codefendant’s case, which is now over,” said Conasauga Judicial Circuit Assistant District Attorney Christina Antalis.

Public defender Micha Gates announced that the State had opted to reduce the two armed robbery counts against Upshaw to the lesser included offense of robbery.

“The State’s recommendation as to count one, the lesser included offense of robbery, is a term of five years,” Antalis told the court. “That he serve no more than 200 days from today’s date awaiting entry into the probation detention center for no less than 90, no more than 120 days, with a special condition that he successfully complete the probation detention center for the time as recommended.”

The balance of that sentence, Antalis continued, would be served on probation.

“He is to pay a $1,500 fine along with court costs, surcharges and probation supervision fees,” she said. “And complete 200 hours of community service.”

Other special conditions of probation bar Upshaw from entering any and all Family Dollar retail stores and he must refrain from having any contact with codefendant Alondo Ray Johnson.

Johnson, 36, of Chattanooga, was found guilty of armed robbery, aggravated assault, kidnapping, false imprisonment and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony in a Whitfield Superior Court jury trial that ended in November.

Johnson was accused of robbing a Family Dollar store in Dalton on Dec. 5, 2020.

“Johnson and his codefendant left their items at the register and returned to the aisles,” a Whitfield County press release indicated. “Shortly after, Johnson approached a clerk who was arranging greeting cards and held a gun to her hip. He took the clerk to the manager’s office, still at gunpoint, where the assistant manager was counting the money in preparation for closing.”

Johnson was sentenced to back to back life sentences for the offenses — plus another 80 years, without the possibility of parole.

The second count of robbery against Upshaw produced a one-year-to-serve sentence with credit for time served, concurrent with the first count of robbery.

Two additional false imprisonment pleas produced concurrent one-year-to-serve sentences.

Three aggravated assault charges against the defendant all carried concurrent, one-year-to-serve sentences, with credit for time served.

The two firearm possession counts resulted in consecutive five-year probation sentences for the defendant.

“The global sentence is a 15-year sentence with the terms and conditions as previously stated,” Antalis said. “We expect that he has already served the serve time for (several) counts … additional serve time would be the time awaiting placement in the probation detention center.”

Upshaw entered the plea via videoconference.

“The actual sentence starts Aug. 15 of last year, 2022,” Gates told the court. “But the no more than 200 days starts today, Dec. 19, 2023.”

The robbery charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years, Antalis said.

The false imprisonment charges, she indicated, carried a maximum sentence of 10 years.

Judge Wilbanks was the presiding judge in the aforementioned Johnson jury trial.

“The reason this recommendation is what it is is because you testified in the trial of your codefendant,” he told Upshaw. “I found your testimony to be credible and appreciated you being willing to come forward — I hope that you’ve learned a valuable lesson here.”

Continuing, Wilbanks told Upshaw that Johnson “was the last person on Earth you ever should’ve put confidence in.”

The defendant said he was 17 years old at the time the offenses were committed.

“After getting in the car with him, you found yourself in circumstances beyond what you imagined, at least that’s what you said at trial,” Wilbanks said. “I don’t have any hesitation in this recommendation and accepting it.”

Wilbanks noted that Upshaw was eligible under Georgia’s First Offender Act — a statute that would give the defendant an opportunity to expunge the felony convictions from his record pending he completes probation without any further violations.

Upshaw, initially, declined the offer.

“Counsel that’s with you today weren’t involved in the trial of the case, they didn’t hear your testimony, they don’t know what I’m saying about how moved I was by it,” Wilbanks addressed the defendant. “I believed, at the time, if you had a second shot you really would use it to the benefit of making yourself successful — and having a felony conviction is going to do just the opposite.”

After speaking with public defender Elise Williard, Upshaw ultimately changed his mind and asked to be sentenced under “first offender treatment.”

Wilbanks accepted the request.

“Good luck, sir,” he told Upshaw. “Good decision.”