LAWRENCE CO. – While charges against two Lawrence County miscreants weren’t exactly unexpected, at least some of them were nonetheless shocking when they were announced to the public in mid-December 2015.
And many are pleased at the timing, as the serious felonies filed against the obnoxious and arrogant Caleb Gallion, 18, occurred when the boy was still under an open plea in a car theft case, meaning sentencing hadn’t occurred yet…and now, when he goes off to Illinois Department of Corrections, he’ll likely get a more meaningful sentence than he otherwise would have.
Gallion is alleged to have been part of a duo breaking into cars across Lawrence County and basically terrorizing several neighborhoods, given the ineptitude of some of the local constabulary.
The second part of that duo is the unfortunate offspring of one of Lawrence’s murderesses: Anthony J. Vantlin, 21, only son of Connie Vantlin, who killed Norma Sines with a hammer attached to the end of a baseball bat in January of 2006 in Bridgeport, when she was living in Sines’ home, destitute and down on her luck. Her son (AJ, as he’s called) observed the entire thing and even helped hide the body in a back room of the home.
The two were suspects in a series of early-December vehicle break-ins across Bridgeport, but didn’t come to the point of apprehension until one occurred in Sumner and a serious investigation actually took place.
Gallion, being out on bond from a May 28 filing of Possession of a Stolen Vehicle dating back to the February 2 incident in which he absconded with a car, bearing with him his pseudo-girlfriend Chloe Case (creating its own situation), was in much deeper trouble than Vantlin was (not that Vantlin wasn’t in trouble, but Gallion’s was compounded).
In the lead-up to his arrest, Caleb Gallion took to his Facebook page, whining about people “lying” about his involvement in the car break-ins and subsequent thefts within Bridgeport. Many of his posts were extremely self-incriminating, typical of an abrasive, defensive teen with the mentality of someone much, much younger. Some of them were self-absorbed, as he calls himself “Gallion the Stallion” as if he has some kind of persona people are supposed to consider with adulation. All of them were being watched by law enforcement, and Gallion (along with Vantlin) was arrested on Dec. 16, a couple of days after his last snide comment.
Authorities have advised Disclosure that when the two were caught and were faced with the evidence, both of them confessed to the burglaries.
When a search warrant was executed on Gallion’s premises and possessions, however, was when things took a turn for him: on his phone were found pornographic images of the girl he was obsessed with, Case (a minor), and he was so charged when those images reached the prosecutor’s office along with the police report.
When formal charges hit, Gallion’s were as follows in order of Counts 1-7:
Child Pornography, in that on Dec. 11, at 129 E. South, Sumner (Gallion’s residence) with knowledge of the nature of them, Gallion possessed a photograph of (name deleted in charges), a child whom he knew to be under the age of 18, which depicted her in a nude pose exposing her breasts;
Child Pornography, with the wording the same as the first charge except that the image depicted the child in a nude post exposing her breasts and genitalia;
Burglary, in that on Dec. 10, at 5449 Liberty Hills Lane, Sumner, Gallion committed the offense by knowingly entering a vehicle belonging to Joshua Heath with the intent to commit a theft;
Burglary on the same day, but at 905 Seed, Bridgeport, Gallion committed the offense by knowingly entering a vehicle belonging to Jackie Gillespie with the intent to commit a theft;
Burglary on the same day, but at 6702 Alma Lane, Bridgeport, Gallion committed the offense by knowingly entering a vehicle belonging to Bob Shearer with the intent to commit a theft;
Burglary on the same day, but at 1107 Ash, Bridgeport, Gallion committed the offense by knowingly entering a vehicle belonging to John Correll with the intent to commit a theft; and
Burglary on the same day, but at 743 Seed, Bridgeport, Gallion committed the offense by knowingly entering a vehicle belonging to Eugenia Abell with the intent to commit a theft.
He wasn’t charged with theft; however, the investigation is still pending. Items reportedly thieved in the break-ins included a laptop and a school backpack; these, Disclosure have been told, were returned to their owners.
The five counts of Burglary were each also charged against Vantlin identically. Some in Lawrence are saying that Vantlin was sort of “dragged into” the alleged vehicle burglary spree, but that doesn’t mitigate the charges as they appear.
Authorities have also indicated that there is a third person involved in this effort, but due to the fact that the person is a juvenile, the name cannot be revealed unless a non-official does it (as in the case of Chloe Case, confirmed by family).
As well, there has been a hint at the involvement of at least Gallion and Vantlin in an arson in Bridgeport; nothing has yet been charged, however.
Gallion had initially been set for sentencing in his open plea of guilty in the car theft on March 16, 2016.
Now, with the new and even more serious charges he’s facing, he was to have had a prelim on them January 6 (delivery date for this issue).
Vantlin was scheduled for a prelim on the same day.