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CASSOPOLIS — A Dowagiac man is going back to prison after being sentenced Friday in Cass County Circuit Court for possessing meth as a habitual offender.

     Michael Duane Zech, 33, of Courtland Street in Dowagiac, pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine as a habitual offender and was sentenced to 19 months to 15 years in prison and $1,548 in fines and costs.

     He has credit for no time served as he was on parole at the time of incident and the new sentence is consecutive to any sentence for the parole violation. He was released Nov. 7, 2023 after serving prison sentences for operating a meth lab and conspiracy to deliver meth.

     This current incident occurred May 29 in Dowagiac when he was arrested with another felon and police found meth on Zech and a weapon on the other person.

     “The bottom line for the defendant is that whether he’s on the street, in a rehab center or in prison, he has to understand that he has an addiction,” Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz said. “He’s already done a six year stint in prison, he needs to get hold of his addiction.”

     Zech apologized for wasting the court’s time.

     “The court doesn’t consider it a waste of our time but you’re wasting a whole lot of your life,” Cass County Circuit Court Judge Mark Herman said. “You need to look in the mirror every morning and apologize to yourself. Only then will you make the changes to stay out of prison.”

     “This is your eighth felony conviction,” the judge added. “You’re only 33 years old and you’ve spent a good part of your adult life behind bars, most for drug use. You’ve been using meth daily since you were 23, it’s hard to believe you can’t weigh the cost of using meth with the cost of going to prison.”

Is getting high worth all those years in prison?” he asked. “Is partying on the weekend worth seven years of your life? No one can wave a magic wand and change you until you decide to change … I’ve seen way too many lives waste and too many people keep going back to prison.”

Two other area residents were given probation terms for meth charges while a third person was given the chance to keep a felony meth conviction off her record.