Not guilty plea to drug charges

Appearing before Judge Molly Owen on November 9, Jennifer Marie Charlo entered her not guilty pleas to a felony count of criminal possession of dangerous drugs and a misdemeanor count of criminal possession of drug paraphernalia.

According to charging documents, on August 23, Deputy Wegener with the Sanders County Sheriff’s Office responded to a vehicle that had been reported as parked in the yard of a residence in Noxon. Deputy Wegener looked through the driver’s side windshield, seeing a woman, Charlo, sleeping in the passenger seat, along with a man asleep in the driver’s seat with a piece of foil with burned residue and a lighter in his lap. As the radioed in, Charlo woke up and started trying to explain why they were parked there. As suspected drugs were witnessed on the driver’s lap, both Charlo and the driver, her husband Michael, were detained, according to charging documents. Allegedly, Michael stated that they had been driving back from a job in Sandpoint and had gotten tired, so they pulled into the yard to sleep around 3 a.m. Michael also said that he had pulled out a “heroin pill,” which he and Charlo both used.

The couple claimed they knew the property owner as they had stopped previously to ask for gas to get home. After receiving consent, deputies searched the vehicle, locating paraphernalia items inside. Judge Owen set a trial date of April 10, 2023, for Charlo.