Samuel Turner, 50, of Lincoln, Nebraska, is facing serious federal time after a jury convicted him of possession with intent to distribute five grams or more of actual methamphetamine. The verdict, delivered Friday morning, capped a five-hour jury deliberation following a weeklong trial in federal court. The conviction stems from a late-night disturbance call that took a sharp turn when officers spotted Turner standing directly on top of a baggie filled with drugs.
The trouble began on August 9, 2017, when Lincoln Police responded to a disturbance in a north Lincoln trailer park. Officers approached Turner outside his residence and asked if he knew the suspect. Turner said he didn’t. But when an officer shone a flashlight his way and Turner asked him to lower it, the beam revealed what no one expected—Turner’s foot planted squarely on a clear plastic bag containing a white crystalline substance.
What happened next was caught on bodycam and recounted in court. When officers ordered Turner to put his hands on a nearby vehicle, he disobeyed. Instead, he bent down, grabbed the bag, and hurled it under the vehicle. Officers quickly detained him and recovered the package, which the Nebraska State Patrol Crime Lab later confirmed contained at least 31 grams of pure methamphetamine. A second, smaller bag with about 1 gram of the drug was also found nearby.
The trial began February 20 before Senior U.S. District Judge Richard G. Kopf in Lincoln federal court. Prosecutors painted Turner as a dealer trying to ditch evidence, while the defense argued the drugs weren’t his and the encounter was a setup. The jury didn’t buy it. After receiving the case Thursday afternoon, they returned a guilty verdict by Friday morning.
U.S. Attorney Joseph P. Kelly, who oversaw the prosecution, called the conviction a win for community safety. “Selling poison like meth destroys lives,” Kelly said in a statement. “When we catch someone red-handed, we’re going to hold them accountable.” Turner now faces a mandatory minimum sentence due to the quantity and purity of the meth involved.
The case was investigated by the Lincoln/Lancaster County Drug Task Force, part of an ongoing push to dismantle local distribution networks. Turner’s sentencing is scheduled for a later date. If past precedent holds, he could be looking at years behind bars—time served not for selling, but for getting caught with his foot on the evidence.
RELATED: Shawndell L. Burke Gets 14 Years for Meth Conspiracy
RELATED: Bradley Leffers Sentenced in $712K Metal Building Scam
Related Federal Cases
- Lincoln Man Sentenced to 150 Months for Meth and Oxycodone Bust · Nebraska
- Lincoln Man Gets 10 Years for Meth Conspiracy · Nebraska
- Lincoln Man Pierce Gets 11 Years for Meth Conspiracy · Nebraska
- Lincoln Woman Gets 63 Months for Meth Conspiracy · Nebraska
- Lincoln Man Travis Haas Gets 10 Years for Meth Conspiracy · Nebraska
Key Facts
- State: Nebraska
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
🔒 Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
Browse More
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
Drug TraffickingDrug TraffickingDrug TraffickingDrug Trafficking