Accused pot grower pleads

SANDPOINT — A Rathdrum man accused of operating a productive indoor marijuana growing operation in southern Bonner County pleaded guilty Monday to amended felony drug charges.

Dane Lou Schumacher’s pleas are conditioned on a 1st District Court judge’s agreement to adopt sentencing terms which propose a suspended prison term and three years of probation, court records show.

Schumacher is scheduled to be sentenced on June 24. If the court ultimately declines to bind itself to the agreement proposed by the state and the defense, Schumacher would be allowed to rescind his pleas and go to trial.

Schumacher, 61, was arrested following an Idaho State Police investigation culminated with the search of a shop building at 5294 Bandy Road last June. The raid yielded as many as 65 pot plants in various stages of development and more than nine pounds of dried marijuana.

Schumacher confessed to being involved with the operation as a way to supplement the benefits he receives from the Veterans Administration, a probable cause affidavit alleges.

Schumacher was charged with two counts of marijuana trafficking — one count for manufacturing it and another for possessing so much of it.

Schumacher was bound over to stand trial last year and entered not guilty pleas earlier this year, court documents indicate.

A plea agreement between the state and the defense amended the trafficking charges downward to one count of manufacturing a controlled substance and possession with intent to distribute. The agreement recommends a suspended prison term of two to five years and probation.