Jury finds couple guilty of multiple drug charges
A jury found Mary and Bradley Calvin Weitzel guilty Wednesday night of some of the drug charges they faced after a three-day trial.
Their son, Bradley Elton Weitzel, 23, was found not guilty on charges of manufacturing marijuana and conspiracy to possess drugs.
Bradley Calvin Weitzel, 52, testified he had bought marijuana to help his wife's glaucoma. He also admitted to buying psychedelic mushrooms to help with his migraine headaches. He said Mary Weitzel knew nothing of the mushrooms or eight marijuana plants police found in the basement of their home during a raid on June 23, 2006.
Police got onto the case when a parcel delivery driver became suspicious of a package he was to deliver to Bradley Calvin Weitzel and instead. took it to police.
Police subsequently got a search warrant to open the package and found it contained drug-related material.
He was found guilty of manufacturing marijuana, possession with intent to deliver marijuana, conspiracy to possess marijuana, conspiracy to possess psychedelic mushrooms, possession of marijuana, possession of psychedelic mushrooms and possession of paraphernalia.
He faces at least a 5-year mandatory prison term because of the proximity of six guns to the drugs in his house at 441 Portman Road, Summit Township.
Mary Weitzel, 50, was found guilty of conspiracy to possess marijuana, conspiracy to manufacture marijuana, possession of marijuana and possession of paraphernalia.
The two were found not guilty on charges related to the manufacture of mushrooms.
Kristine Rickets, an attorney from the state Attorney General's office, who prosecuted the case, asked Butler County Judge William Shaffer to place Bradley Calvin Weitzel on $50,000 bail and electronic monitoring. She said during the trial he had talked about moving to a state that allows the use of medical marijuana and with the convictions he posed a "flight risk."
Shaffer agreed to house arrest and electronic monitoring of Bradley Calvin Weitzel until the couple's sentencing date of Nov. 2.
During the trial, Bradley Calvin Weitzel served as his own legal counsel with attorney Jerry Cassady serving as stand-by counsel.
Weitzel told Shaffer that Cassady would represent him through the sentencing phase.