Darlington County man, woman are sentenced on 2020 drug charges
United States Attorney Corey F. Ellis announced that co-defendants Michael Anthony Dudley, 43, of Hartsville, and Lindsey Munn Butler, 36, of Lamar, were sentenced to federal prison after pleading guilty to drug-related charges. Dudley pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute and distribution of heroin and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Butler pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute and distribution of heroin. Evidence presented to the court showed that on July 28, 2020, the Darlington County Drug Enforcement Unit used a confidential informant to make a controlled purchase of heroin from Dudley at a location in Hartsville. On Aug. 7, 2020, the Darlington County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant during which law enforcement located a firearm, a baggie containing 3.947 grams of heroin, and 10 baggies, three of which were confirmed to contain heroin. The firearm and narcotics were found in Dudley’s bedroom. Additional evidence presented to the court showed that on Aug. 6, 2020, the Darlington County Drug Enforcement Unit used a confidential informant to make a controlled purchase of heroin from Butler also at a location in Hartsville. United States District Judge Sherri A. Lydon sentenced Dudley to 81 months in federal prison, to be followed by a five-year term of court-ordered supervision, and sentenced Butler to 10 months in federal prison, to be followed by a three-year term of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system. The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Darlington County Sheriff’s Office, and the Darlington County Drug Enforcement Unit. This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and re-entry programs for lasting reductions in crime.
