Moorcroft Leader - The Voice of the Community Since 1909, Serving Moorcroft and Pine Haven, Wyoming

A Douglas man has been given a suspended sentence for possession with intent to deliver after allegedly informing a police officer who spotted him walking drunkenly through town that he was taking a bag of marijuana from one friend to another.

On January 7 at around 8:30 p.m., a Moorcroft Police Officer observed a man stumbling down the street, later identified as Brock Allen Smith. The officer reports that Smith was on the roadway, despite there being a sidewalk available, and appeared to be intoxicated.

According to court reports, Smith made an abrupt right turn onto North Yellowstone and carried on walking. The officer made contact with Smith and detected the odor of alcohol on his breath.

Smith was allegedly slurring his words and swaying from side to side. When asked where he was going, he stated that he was heading to Gillette.

The officer asked if Smith knew where he was and he allegedly paused for a moment and said, “It starts with a W”. The officer reports asking Smith to walk to the front of his patrol vehicle and place the bag in his hand down on the ground.

Smith allegedly complied, but sat himself down as well. The officer reports informing Smith that he did not want him to sit down, only to place the bag on the ground.

Preparing to pat him down, the officer reports asking Smith if he had anything on his person; Smith allegedly began reaching down to his pockets and patting them. The officer reports telling him multiple times not to do this and to only give a verbal answer.

Due to Smith’s inability to follow simple instructions and his intoxication, the officer asked him to turn around and place his hands behind his back; Smith complied. The officer conducted a pat-down and allegedly detected a faint odor of burnt marijuana omitting from Smith’s trench coat.

Smith denied having any marijuana on his person. The officer placed him in handcuffs and requested for a second officer to respond.

A probable cause search of Smith’s person allegedly revealed a clear plastic bag of suspected marijuana that was later weighed at 0.9 ounces. When asked where the marijuana had come from, Smith allegedly stated that one friend had given it to him to deliver to another friend.

Smith pled guilty to one charge of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. Judge Michael Deegan gave him a suspended sentence of between three and five years in a state penal institution, pending successful completion of three years of probation, and a $500 fine.