Judge imposes prison sentence in meth case

SANDPOINT - A Priest River man was sentenced Thursday to serve up to 10 years in prison for allegedly operating a methamphetamine lab.

Robert Dale Coleman will have to serve at least five years at the Idaho Department of Correction before becoming eligible for release, according to the terms of the sentence handed down by District Judge Steve Verby.

A jury convicted Coleman, 54, of trafficking meth via manufacturing. The guilty verdict followed a three-day trial in 1st District Court in September.

Coleman testified he was in the wrong place at the wrong time and had no connection to the drug lab. He told jurors he was at the location where the lab was found to conduct repairs on a truck.

Coleman continued to profess his innocence at his sentencing. He told the court he is seek a retrial and claims he can prove detectives lied, court records show.

Coleman was one of two suspects tied to the lab, which was located in an outbuilding in the 600 block of Lincoln Avenue in Priest River in June 2007. The home's resident, Colemon David Hamilton, was already facing a meth manufacturing charge when the takedown happened. Hamilton, 50, pleaded guilty to the older charge and the new one was dismissed as part of a plea agreement. He was subsequently sentenced to two to four years in prison.

Bonner County Prosecutor-elect Louis Marshall accused Coleman of continuing to lie about his involvement with the lab and recommended a sentence of seven to 15 years, court documents indicate. Chief Public Defender Isabella Robertson called for a two- to seven-year sentence.