Drug lab charge dropped

Charges against the second suspect in a June mobile meth lab arrest east of Garfield were dismissed Sept. 11 on a motion by the state. Jesse A. Reyes, 53, had been scheduled for trial Sept., 11 on charges of manufacturing methamphetamine and possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver. Reyes has been in jail since his arrest June 25. His bail for pre-trial release had been set at $50,000.

He was ordered to be released immediately from jail after the charges were dismissed Monday.

The state opted to drop the charges against Reyes after Defense Attorney Steve Martonick filed a motion to dismiss because evidence in the case had been destroyed without first being fingerprinted.

The court earlier in the case had allowed for the evidence from the alleged meth lab, which was considered to be hazardous, to be destroyed provided the state took fingerprints from the items to document possession by the defendants. In his motion to dismiss, Martonick said the fingerprints had not been taken from the items before they were destroyed.

The other suspect in the case, Jennifer Heaton, 44, Spokane, who was a passenger in the car and arrested with Reyes and booked into jail at the same time, was sentenced to three months in jail after she pleaded guilty Sept. 1 to an amended charge of possession of methamphetamine. She was allowed credit for time served since her arrest and release. Heaton, like Reyes, had originally been charged with manufacturing methamphetamine.

Reyes and Heaton were arrested June 25 on the Garfield/Farmington Road by Palouse Officer Joe Handley. According to the report by Sgt. Keith Cooper, fire extinguishers found in the 1994 Green Mustang Reyes was driving had been converted to contain anhydrous ammonia, an ingredient used in making methamphetamine.

Heaton, who had prior drug convictions in Franklin County, was ordered to pay a $2,000 drug fine and $800 in court costs and fees.

Deputies at the time noted arrests for portable meth labs of the type Reyes was alleged to have in the car he was driving have become less frequent as drug distribution systems have evolved.