THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 28, 1995 TAG: 9510280323
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY LANE DEGREGORY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 76 lines
If Maryland's judicial system does not convict Ivan Fitzherbert Lovell of killing a state trooper, North Carolina officials want the 25-year-old Outer Banks drug dealer back in their prison system.
The North Carolina Parole Commission has issued a warrant for Lovell's arrest and charged him with violating the terms of his parole.
The five-member commission, appointed by the governor, plans to mail the warrant to Maryland authorities on Monday, said North Carolina parole commission spokeswoman Sherry Pilkington.
Lovell was on parole in North Carolina until 1999 for cocaine convictions. He was not supposed to leave the state without permission. His parole officer has said he did not know Lovellhad planned to travel to Maryland this month.
``We don't want him back now. But the commission will file this warrant as a detainer on Lovell,'' Pilkington said Friday from her Raleigh office. ``We in no way want to interfere with Maryland's charges against this man. But we wanted to make sure his access to bond was eliminated. If he is acquitted of the crimes he's been accused of, he'd have to come back to North Carolina under this warrant.''
On Oct. 17, Lovell and a companion were arrested about 30 miles north of the Virginia border and charged with first-degree murder in the death of Maryland trooper Edward A. Plank, 28. Officers said they found a pound of crack and powder cocaine in the car. They recovered a .45-caliber handgun near where they apprehended Lovell.
Maryland authorities said Lovell - also known as Donovan Ault - was delivering drugs from New York to North Carolina when the trooper pulled him over for speeding on U.S. 13 about 1 a.m. Lovell signed one name on the ticket, then scratched it out and signed another. The trooper became suspicious and returned to his car to call for back-up.
When Plank approached the suspects' vehicle for a second time, shots were fired from the driver's side of the car - hitting the trooper in the face. Plank died a few hours later at a Maryland hospital. He is survived by a wife and 7-month-old daughter.
Plank's partner shot Lovell in the head and right arm as the suspect apparently tried to get away. Lovell was released from a Maryland hospital Oct. 20, Maryland State Police Sgt. Steve Bacon said. Lovell is being held in the Wicomico County Detention Center without bond.
Lovell's companion, William Smith Lynch, 21, also was charged with first-degree murder in the incident. Lynch had been living with Lovell in a Kill Devil Hills trailer. He is being held in a different Maryland jail without bond.
Neither man has had a preliminary hearing on the murder charges yet. Bacon said he was uncertain whether one had been scheduled. The defendants have 10 days to request a preliminary hearing.
In June 1994, Lovell was paroled from prison after serving less than a year of a 12-year sentence. A jury convicted him in November 1993 of possession of cocaine with the intent to sell and deliver, and keeping a dwelling for the keeping and selling of controlled substances. Since 1988, when he was 18, Lovell has been charged with five counts of possession of cocaine with the intent to sell and deliver, four counts of delivering cocaine and at least six other cocaine-related crimes in Dare County alone.
``We don't desire his presence back in North Carolina until he's had his day in court in Maryland,'' Pilkington said. ``But this man is a serious offender. And we want to have that warrant in place because if he is available for release from Maryland's prison system, then we could address his parole violations here.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Ivan F. Lovell was on parole in North Carolina after serving less
than a year of a 12-year sentence for a drug conviction when he was
arrested in the slaying of a Maryland state trooper. If he is not
convicted on those charges, he'll be prosecuted for a parole
violation here.
KEYWORDS: MURDER by CNB