Women charged with drug offenses

Two Flathead County women pleaded innocent last week during a federal court session in Missoula to charges alleging they distributed methamphetimine.

Scarla Dee Russell, 33, of Kalispell, and Tracie Marie Jordan, 33, of Bigfork, each are charged with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, possession with intent to distribute and distribution of methamphetimine.

If convicted, they each face a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and could be sentenced to up to 40 years in prison, $2 million in fines and four years of supervised release.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Victoria Francis said additional information — such as the dates of their arrests and the nature of the alleged crimes — would not be released until either trials or plea agreements are reached.

Russell and Jordan pleaded innocent April 14 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah C. Lynch

Their arrests came as a result of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Montana Division of Criminal Investigation.

Russell was sentenced to three years with the Montana Department of Corrections by Flathead District Judge Stewart Stadler for a conviction of felony possession of dangerous drugs in June 2010.

Jordan has two previous convictions for criminal possession of dangerous drugs. She was most recently sentenced to three years with the Department of Corrections by Stadler in July 2010.

Russell and Jordan are both currently in federal custody.

Russell and Jordan are both currently in federal custody.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael T. Wolfe is the prosecutor for both cases.