A Duluth man was sentenced to five years in prison and four years of supervised released in federal court Thursday in Minneapolis for growing marijuana plants in this home.
James Arthur Lyons, 60, pleaded guilty July 2 to a single count of manufacturing marijuana. In his plea agreement, Lyons admitted that from January 2009 through November 24, 2009, he manufactured approximately 204 marijuana plants in his Duluth home.
St. Louis County sheriff's deputies uncovered Lyons' marijuana-plant-growing operation at 226 S. 56th Ave. W. in West Duluth on Nov. 24, 2009. He was charged in Minnesota district court with selling marijuana, possessing a controlled substance and being a felon in possession of a firearm. The state charges were dismissed in January 2010. He was indicted on the federal charge in September of that year.
It's not unusual in cocaine cases for state charges to be dismissed because local authorities seek federal prosecution instead, where convictions result in stiffer penalties. Federal prosecution of marijuana cases in the Duluth area is rarer.
