Siblings Get Long Sentences for Marijuana

An eastern Missouri brother and sister have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for growing marijuana in their apartment.

The Daily Journal newspaper in Park Hills, Mo. reports that 24-year-old David DePriest was sentenced Tuesday to 22 years in prison, and his 36-year-old sister, Natalie DePriest, received a 15-year sentence. Both lived in Farmington at the time of their arrest.

Their attorney, Dan Viets had asked for probation. Viets is state coordinator for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

Assistant St. Francois County prosecutor Pat King had sought the maximum sentence against David DePriest, calling it a large-scale operation and noting that he had guns and bullet-proof vests. Viets said 12 plants and eight baby sprouts in a closet are not a large operation.