Window tint case first on Judge Hoychick's docket

Years down the road, Sarah Chapman will be the answer in a Eunice historical trivia contest.
Question: “Who was the first person sentenced by City Judge Terry Hoychick?”
Answer: Sarah Chapman.
That by no interpretation means the matter was trivial to either the judge or the defendant.
Ms. Chapman was the initial defendant called from the docket in the judge’s debut court session Monday morning.
She was charged with improper vehicle window tinting, and pleaded guilty at her arraignment.
Hoychick fined her the standard $225 plus court costs, and gave her two weeks to arrange payment.
The defendant mentioned she had had the tint removed since receiving a citation. Responding to a question from Hoychick, she said she had had the tint put on, that the vehicle did not have it when she acquired it.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” the judge noted. “You should know better.”
The case was one of several heard in the arraignment or pre-trial hearing stage by Hoychick in the first session of his term which began Jan. 1.
The session, as was to be expected, included several stops and starts as the new jurist familiarized himself with court procedure and court officials familiarized themselves with him.
The docket was covered in about 90 minutes.
Among the arraignments were a couple of not guilty pleas, resulting in Hoychick setting trial dates for those cases.
His stated intentions are to conduct court during the day on Mondays, avoiding the night court sessions long a standard in city court. Juvenile court will be held on Wednesdays.
In one case Monday, Hoychick sentenced a woman who pleaded guilty to issuing worthless checks to pay restitution ($30.95) and $146 plus court costs.
“It’s a good thing you have that baby in your arms,” he said, noting the whimpering, wiggling toddler held by the defendant. “I won’t do anything else today, but don’t do it again,” he said.
Two women who had not lived up to agreements to do community service and attend corrective classes were given one more chance to make good. “There are no more appearances. You’ve got to get it done, or else,” the judge said.
Hoychick sentenced four people in cases that were resolved by pre-trial deliberation between defense and prosecution.
Two shoplifters pleaded in a case in which Asst. DA Paul Brown said the city wants to send a clear message to thieves “not to come into our town.”
Under terms of the agreement, and the sentence of Hoychick, Ashley Berzas and Renell Arabie, both of Church Point, are banned from Walmart stores anywhere and will serve 15 days each of their six-months suspended sentences for theft by shoplifting, from Walmart.
Additionally, they must pay $250 plus costs, do community service, attend theft prevention class and be on extended active probation.
John Belfour, charged with possession of drug paraphernalia after a fire allegedly caused by a crack pipe used by him, pleaded guilty after negotiations.
Hoychick sentenced him to six months, suspended, with one year of unsupervised probation, and fined him $100 plus costs.