A Sierra Vista man who avoided a prison term last year when he was placed on probation for three felony convictions is now facing the prospect of spending several years in prison due to his Dec. 14 admission of violating the conditions of probation by using an illegal drug and failing to participate in a treatment program.
Anthony Terrell Groom was placed on a three-year term of supervised probation in July 2019 after pleading guilty to weapons misconduct, tampering with evidence, and fleeing police in three separate cases. He will be back in Cochise County Superior Court for a Jan. 4, 2021 hearing after admitting he used methamphetamine and not cooperating with a residential treatment program.
At the hearing, Judge Laura Cardinal has discretion to reinstate Groom, 42, to probation or to send him to the Arizona Department of Corrections (ADC) to serve the prison terms which could have been imposed last year in his three cases. If Groom is placed back on probation the judge could also impose a 30-day jail stay.
Court records show Groom became the subject of a bench warrant on Sept. 11 after his probation officer filed a petition to revoke probation. The petition alleged Groom committed six violations between July 1 and Sept. 8, including failure to report for two monthly probation visits, the use of meth and marijuana, and changing residences without approval.
The arrest warrant was executed by the Pascua Yaqui Tribal Police on Oct. 26. Groom remains in the Cochise County jail on a no-bail order pending the outcome of next month’s hearing.
Groom was released from ADC in April 2015 after serving a short sentence for flight from law enforcement. His history of ADC sentences dates back to a 1996 burglary conviction and also includes five years for a 1997 armed robbery, 4.5 years for a 2003 trafficking in stolen property conviction, and five years for a 2004 aggravated assault.