On Aug. 28, a Texas judge sentenced two people on charges associated with a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Four others who had been accused of having roles in the conspiracy were sentenced earlier in August after pleading guilty in April.
According to the court documents, agents with the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Drug Enforcement Administration conducted an investigation into a suspected drug ring. The alleged conspiracy reportedly involved individuals from a number of cities in the Texas Panhandle, including Amarillo, Lubbock and Plainview. The investigation involved multiple undercover drug purchases and searches of several residential homes. Ultimately, the agents seized about 10 pounds of methamphetamine, about $20,000 in cash and nine firearms.
The two who were sentenced on Aug. 28 were identified as a 39-year-old Grand Prairie man and a 43-year-old Amarillo man. Both were sentenced to 130 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to the charges. The other four were identified as a 30-year-old Friona man, a 32-year-old Amarillo man, a 51-year-old Plainview woman and a 52-year-old Lubbock woman. They received prison sentences that ranged from 46 months to 210 months.
Even those who are facing serious drug charges have certain rights that deserve to be protected. If those rights are violated, the charges could potentially be thrown out or be reduced in severity. For example, if the authorities did not obtain a proper search warrant before conducting a search of a person or a person’s belongings, any evidence that they find could be deemed inadmissible in court. A criminal law attorney could also potentially challenge the drug charges if the evidence is missing, is insufficient or cannot be directly connected to the defendant.
Source: My High Plains, “Four Local Meth Distributors Sentenced“, Karl Wehmhoener, Aug. 28, 2017
