Posted: 1/23/07
Man sentenced in marijuana case
Mark Casey Richmond, 39, of Houston, was sentenced on January 19 to 90 days in jail for growing marijuana.
Richmond and Patrick Daniel Dingley, 38, Rochester, were charged in September of 2005 with four counts of third degree conspiracy to manufacture drugs.
Richmond pled guilty to third degree possession of a controlled substance on October 9, 2006.
Judge James Fabian stayed a 21-month prison sentence for Richmond based on guidelines for a severity level six crime.
Richmond must also pay a $1,000 fine and perform 48 hours of community service. He was allowed time to work on his paper route every day, as well as 15 minutes at home to haul in firewood, and two hours per day to care for his elderly mother.
Other conditions include not using mind-altering substances, submitting to random drug tests, and not associating with the other two men charged in the case.
Richmond will be on probation for up to 20 years, but that could be lifted after eight years if he has no violations.
Patrick Dingley reached the same plea bargain as Richmond on December 4. He will be sentenced on January 30 at 11 a.m.
Third man pleads guilty
Jacob Paul Markee, 24 , Rochester, was also charged in the case in September of 2006. He was charged with possession, production and/or cultivation of a controlled substance in the third degree, and liability for crimes of another.
Markee pled guilty on January 5 to conspiracy to commit controlled substance in the third degree. He will be sentenced on February 28 at 9 a.m.
The case involved the growing of 286 marijuana plants in three different groves on U.S. Fish and Wildlife land and the Gillette property near the Root River in rural Hokah Township.
New trial date for Hahn
In other court news, a new jury will be convened on March 21 to decide when Scott Lee Hahnís criminal sexual offenses took place.
Hahn, 38, was found guilty on August 2, 2005, of three counts of criminal sexual conduct in the first degree. He has been in the Fillmore County Jail in Preston since then.
If the jury determines that the offenses took place after August 1, 2000, Hahn will face 144 months in prison, compared to an 86 month sentence if the crimes took place prior to that date.
The incidents occurred with a female under the age of 13 sometime in 2000-2003. Charges were filed on May 6, 2004, and he pled not guilty on May 12 of that year.
The jury that found him guilty did not determine when the crimes occurred.
Caledonia Argus
314 West Lincoln St.
P.O. Box 227
Caledonia, MN 55921-0227
507/724-3475
E-Mail: editor.argus@ecm-inc.com