RITZVILLE – Blues Traveler lead singer and harmonica player John Popper has been granted a conditional dismissal in a marijuana case that resulted in his arrest in March, Adams County officials say.
The misdemeanor charge of possession of pot and of drug paraphernalia will be dropped if Popper avoids getting caught with marijuana for at least a year, Deputy Prosecutor Ted Sams said, adding that such agreements are common in misdemeanor drug cases in the county.
Popper, 39, of Snohomish and Brian Gourgeois, 34, of Austin, Texas, who was driving, were arrested and released on their own recognizance March 6 after a state trooper said Popper’s Mercedes sport utility vehicle was clocked at 111 mph on I-90 near Ritzville.
The car was searched after the trooper said he smelled marijuana. Besides some pot, more than a dozen firearms were found in the car but were legally owned and permitted. A weapons charge over brass knuckles and a Buck knife that were found in the glove box was dropped when Popper agreed to surrender them, Sams said.
Gourgeois was charged with reckless driving and the status of that case remained unclear.
The agreement on the pot charge against Popper was reached in April but was only recently disclosed. He is required to undergo eight hours of classroom drug counseling but not any random drug tests.
“If he doesn’t receive any similar charges for a year, the charges will be dismissed,” Sams said.
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