A Shawnee County Sheriff’s officer says he witnessed a Lawrence man, accused in a methamphetamine trafficking ring, sell drugs on several occasions, according to court records.
Statements from deputy Bryan Clemmons are detailed in a motion from the defense attorney for Donald Milton Steele, who was arrested with two other Lawrence men, after a Feb. 17 raid on Steele’s home and business east of Lawrence. Steele’s attorney Thomas Telthorst is asking a federal judge to release Steele on bond as he awaits a trial.
“Through a series of surreptitiously recorded meetings, the alleged conspirators discussed the possibility of manufacturing methamphetamine and counterfeiting money at a rental home that (Steele) owned,” according to the motion summarizing testimony from Clemmons.
Steele, 50, Randy J. Dyke, 50, and Anthony Wayne Sims, 57, each face one federal count of conspiracy to manufacture, distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of methamphetamine from Dec. 20, 2009, until Feb. 17. Sims is the only defendant in the case currently out on $25,000 bond.
U.S. District Judge John Lungstrum will consider the motion to also release Steele on bond during a hearing at 9:30 a.m. todayFriday in Kansas City, Kan.
Steele’s attorney argues prosecutors are making too much out of his criminal history, saying that a 1989 drug conviction from Sedgwick County has been expunged and his only other conviction is for a 2003 misdemeanor battery.
The defense also says Steele wants to be able to work to stabilize his finances and that he has been involved in the community “active in scouting and church.”
But Clemmons, the Shawnee County Sheriff’s deputy, has testified that he infiltrated the group of alleged conspirators and that Steele played a role in supplying two guns and assorted false identification documents as part of the scheme. Clemmons also alleges Steele said he could distribute a pound of methamphetamine and bragged about evading capture by using an alias in an earlier criminal case.
The three men were arrested in connection with the raid at 1706 N. 1500 Road, which also housed Steele’s business, All Seasons Tree Service.
Comments
LJWorld.com doesn’t necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full policy. Also, read about banned accounts and harassing comments.
redfred (anonymous) says…
So he can run and hide again? How many years did he goes as Donny Wiggins to avoid out of state warrants before he was caught that time?
somebodynew (anonymous) says…
OK, I am confused here - his defense lawyer used these statements in his motion????
I think those statements are pretty damning and go to show how he got away with stuff in the past, not how trustworthy he is. He also supplied false ID to this guy, so why wouldn't he have some stashed somewhere if he decided to run??
I know Scooter needs to stay in jail and deserves what he has coming, but I hope he isn't paying this (lawyer??) too much money.
lawthing (anonymous) says…
One count? Who gets indicted on just one count?
One count between 3 defendants that is 1/3 count each?
Sounds like he is in jail for bragging about what he can do, not what he did!
This case is not adding up to me.
budwhysir (anonymous) says…
Do we not have enough room in our jail system for the jaywalkers and parking ticket violators? Why is this even before a judge? Isnt it always allowed that drug offenders, those with multiple dui convictions, and rapists go free to roam our fine streets while on trial???
What a waste of taxpayers money and court time, good thing about letting him out is he will run to another city or state and be a problem for them for a while.
thebcman (anonymous) says…
where are the cuzins claiming he is innocent ???
redmoonrising (anonymous) says…
Lawthing, if you will read it again, you will see that they EACH face one federal count. And the bragging was about using an alias to evade capture in an earlier criminal case.
smitty (anonymous) says…
Good job on displaying the legal filings. Don't think another federal case would still be waiting trial if the same exposure was done in the case that won't go away.
smitty (anonymous) says…
quote.....“Through a series of surreptitiously recorded meetings, the alleged conspirators discussed the possibility of manufacturing methamphetamine and counterfeiting money at a rental home that (Steele) owned,” according to the motion summarizing testimony from Clemmons.
Since the federal arm is involved, why didn't they also charge Steele and the other two with **conspiracy to counterfeit** ? Seems as viable a charge as **conspiracy to manufacture meth.
So these guys fantasize about using an empty house without any actions or maybe even abilities to carry through but we have an arrest for the light weight conspiracy charges. There has been a higher number of reports of "drug busts" in the news lately. This one has no drugs, just a couple local of blowhards flexing there egos.
Why the drug conspiracy and not the counterfeiting conspiracy? IMO, something ain't copacetic with this case and it's not the accused. So far it sounds like a trumped up situation by LE to get this group. Especially for those of us who have turned in neighborhood smells, traffic, disturbances only to have the drug units ignore the reported drug activity.
Again..I am reminded of Vern Miller's days as AG, trying to make a reputation on the drug war, playing out the laws to seemingly emphasize the absurdity of the drug war.
sincerely
cuzin smitty
bblbfolks (anonymous) says…
In my opinion, if you are planning to commit those crimes, you just as guilty as if you actually did them. At the very least the justice system is taking three morons off the streets before they blow up a house trying to cook up a batch of meth.
As to the flight risk....he's already proven his willingness and ability to run from prosecution. You let him out, and he will be as gone as gone can be.
cowboy (anonymous) says…
About the only thing one can draw from this and other recent cases is the following :
Conspiracy can mean running your mouth
The local / fed law enforcement cooperative busts are completely scaled to an out of whack proportion , witness the entire police forces of our community utilized for a few "talkers".
Witness the hoopla over the K2 busts.
How many feds does it take to arrest a few folks ? Sounds a bit like they were encouraged into conspiracy if you read between the lines. I have no use for druggies but this seems a bit of overkill directed form our local feds.
These are run of the mill small cases blown up for what reason. Media attention , notoriety ?
somebodynew (anonymous) says…
OK folks, just a bit of reality here - - The document posted is from the defense attorney. I am quite sure he picked and chose what statements to use (even tho I don't understand what he used). I am positive if the other prosecution documents were revealed, it would show a whole lot more "action" than just a couple of blow-hards talking about what they "could" do.
I may be wrong, but even tho I am somewhat of a conspiracy advocate, I really don't see one here. But then maybe that is because I know the accused and don't have a bit of a problem believing they did this.
Kontum1972 (anonymous) says…
Ha...Ha...hahahahahahahaha....!
might as well turn "charlie manson" loose too....
dawndy (anonymous) says…
YEP!! Scooter will be a scoot'n- It wouldn't be the first time he walked a away from a Tree Service due to legal issues.That I do know first hand !!! But hell it really doesn't seem like they have a real case anyway,give it time if Macatee is involved they will have ahell of a case by the time sentencing comes around. Sounds like everyone jumped the gun.Be patient and catch them in the act.
smitty (anonymous) says…
This article is about conspiracy vs actions...ruling on the federal level..it seems to me the federal judges ruling on this effects the lack viability of the conspiracy charges against the indicted men in the Lawrence arrest for conspiracy to distribute or counterfeit money.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20100...
smitty (anonymous) replies…
ooooops....So much for the conspiracy situation?.....today's news reports more but go to CJ to get the info.