Atmore man busted on felony possession charge
By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
An Atmore man faces felony marijuana possession charges after an Atmore Police Department traffic stop last Friday, June 25, led to the discovery of nearly three-fourths of an ounce of marijuana, along with materials and supplies for packaging the illegal weed for distribution.
Police Chief Chuck Brooks confirmed this week that David Lovorn Johnson, 25, was arrested on the felony pot charge after officers pulled over the vehicle he was driving around 12:30 a.m.
“Our officers spotted a vehicle heading north on Presley Street with no tag,” Brooks said. “They pulled the vehicle over, and as the officers walked up to the car, they smelled a very strong odor of marijuana.”
A search of the vehicle’s interior turned up a Mason jar that contained about 20.9 grams of “a green, leafy substance believed to be marijuana.”
Brooks said “multiple clear baggies and an electronic scale” were also found inside a fanny pack that was in the vehicle.
The situation got worse for Johnson when APD officers discovered also that their suspect was the subject of outstanding warrants from Geneva County.
The Escambia County Detention Center website showed that Johnson remained behind bars as midweek approached, held under $25,000 bond on one count each of first-degree possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
First-degree pot possession is a Class C felony in Alabama. A person convicted of such a crime faces a prison sentence that could range from one year and one day, to 10 years.