R. Booth Goodwin II, United States Attorney
Southern District of West Virginia
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Melvin Smith
June 16, 2011 melvin.smith@usdoj.gov
LOGAN COUNTY MAN AND WOMAN SENTENCED ON FEDERAL OXYCODONE CHARGES
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Two Logan County residents were sentenced today by United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. on federal oxycodone charges. Ricky Dale Spaulding, 39, was sentenced to 30 months in prison for distribution of a quantity of oxycodone. Spaulding admitted that on June 9, 2009, he sold two oxycodone 80-milligram pills to an informant working for the US 119 Task Force in exchange for $200. The drug transaction took place at a residence located at or near Verdunville, Logan County. Also, Shanda Marie Watkins, 33, was sentenced to three years probation for aiding and abetting the distribution of a quantity of oxycodone. Watkins and Spaulding admitted that on June 16, 2009, they sold two 80-milligram oxycodone pills to an informant in exchange for $200. The oxycodone purchased by the confidential informant on June 8 and June 16, 2009 was tested at the West Virginia State Police Forensic Laboratory and proved to contain oxycodone.
The case was investigated by the US 119 Task Force. Assistant United States Attorney William King handled the prosecution.
This case was prosecuted as part of an ongoing effort led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia to combat the illicit sale and misuse of prescription drugs. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, joined by various federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, remain committed to aggressively pursuing and shutting down illegal pill trafficking, eliminating open air drug markets and curtailing the spread of opiate painkillers in communities across the Southern District.
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