ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, January 9, 1997 TAG: 9701100057
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: S.D. HARRINGTON STAFF WRITER
A 21-year-old Raleigh, N.C., man pleaded guilty in Salem Circuit Court on Wednesday to two drug charges that stemmed from a rave last May.
Eric Jonathan Wise had been charged with possession with intent to distribute LSD, marijuana, hallucinogenic mushrooms and MDA, a designer drug powder.
In a plea agreement with Commonwealth's Attorney Fred King, Wise pleaded guilty to the LSD and marijuana charges in exchange for King dropping the other two charges.
Judge Robert P. Doherty sentenced Wise to seven years in prison. He suspended all but seven months of the sentence. Wise will be screened for eligibility for a "boot camp" detention program.
Police arrested Wise after investigating a rave at American Legion Post 3 on Apperson Drive in Salem.
Raves are all-night dance parties with nonstop music. They are nonalcoholic, but stimulants and hallucinogens that keep users wired so they can dance for hours often are available.
The "D-Day" rave had been advertised for the former Winn-Dixie building in West Salem Plaza but was moved to the American Legion building because of fire hazards at the former grocery store. Police shut down the rave about 4 a.m. when they learned that the organizers did not have a permit to hold a dance at the American Legion, King said.
Two officers in the parking lot were asking people to leave when they spotted a car occupied by Wise and a female. When the couple stepped out of the car at the officers' request, police found a blotter sheet of LSD doses in Wise's hand.
When searching the car - which did not belong to Wise - police found several more LSD sheets. They also found 0.74 ounce of marijuana, 0.13 gram of MDA and 0.3 gram of hallucinogenic mushrooms.
They also seized the car and $1,350 from Wise.
LENGTH: Short : 42 linesby CNB