JURY ASSESSES 30-YEAR TERM, $50,000 FINE ON DRUG COUNT

A Pottawatomie County District Court jury that found Clayton L. Armstead,
53, Shawnee area, guilty of two drug possession counts Thursday, assessed
his punishment on the felony at 30 years imprisonment and $50,000 fine on
Friday.

Jurors deliberated about an hour and 45 minutes late Thursday before
finding Armstead guilty of the felony, unlawful possession of controlled
drug with intent to distribute, and guilty of the misdemeanor, possession
of paraphernalia for smoking marijuana.

Associate District Judge John Gardner directed them to return at 9 a.m.
Friday for the second, or punishment, stage of their deliberations.

Before noon, they assessed a 30-year prison sentence and $50,000 fine on
the felony count and a one year in county jail and a $1,000 fine on the
misdemeanor count.

According to testimony in his one-day trial Thursday, Armstead threw
something out of his car when he was stopped at a driver's license
checkpoint on Hardesty Road, one and a half miles east of Gordon Cooper
Drive around midnight, last Sept. 8.

Officers testified that OSBI laboratory tests showed the articles to be
cocaine base and some marijuana paraphernalia.

One juvenile trial will start Monday, second week of the current two-week
jury term.

The next jury term of Pottawatomie County District Court is July 24-27.