District Court Brief

Facing several charges, Brian J. Wiese appeared for sentencing in District Court, Monday, Dec. 21. Per a plea agreement, Wiese pleaded guilty to one of the three counts he was facing: criminal possession of dangerous drugs (methamphetamine), a felony. The other two charges, criminal possession of dangerous drugs (marijuana), a misdemeanor, and criminal possession of drug paraphernalia, a misdemeanor, were dismissed by the court.

Wiese was sentenced to three years in the Department of Corrections, with all three years suspended, 30 days in the county jail with credit of 17 days previously served, and ordered to pay $80 in surcharges.

On May 18, the Sheriff’s Department responded to calls from Opheim. The calls reported a man was wandering town with a loaded .22 rifle and seeing people who were not there. Subsequently, 0.2 grams of suspected methamphetamine was found in Wiese’s vehicle.

Wiese will have 90 days to serve the remainder of his sentence, and will be required to wear a court-ordered drug patch. Judge John McKeon granted the request of the 90-day period to allow Wiese to continue his current employment. McKeon noted that while there was no victim in this case, the drug lifestyle undermines the safety of the whole community.

In other district court news, the arraignment for Mary Strand has been continued and is now scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2016, at 10 a.m. The hearing had been scheduled at 10 a.m. Dec. 21.