Former Wind River judge pleads guilty to drug charges

Associated Press

CASPER, Wyo. (AP) -- A former Wind River Indian Reservation judge pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and prescription drugs and to threatening a federal officer.

Lynda Noah, formerly Lynda Munnell, will face a minimum of five years in federal prison when she's sentenced on June 10.

During Tuesday's hearing, Noah seemed reluctant to admit to the crimes, saying that she suspected -- but didn't know -- that trips to Utah with her sister were to retrieve drugs, and that when she said during a taped telephone call that a Bureau of Indian Affairs police officer "ought to be shot" that it was "just a remark I made."

U.S. District Judge William Downes told Noah she shouldn't plead guilty if she didn't knowingly commit crimes, saying he was particularly troubled by her remarks about the alleged threat.

"I don't want to get a letter from the federal prison saying I bludgeoned you into admitting guilt," Downes said. "If you don't believe you are guilty of this crime, then don't admit to it. If you want to go to trial over this, then we will adjourn and put the government to the burden of proof."

After a brief recess, Noah pleaded guilty, saying she'd talked about the officer being shot with the hope that it would put an end to what she called "harassment by the law enforcement."

Noah was a sitting judge when she and 24 others were arrested last year in connection with a drug ring that authorities said brought methamphetamine and other drugs from Mexico, through Utah, then to Wind River and to Indian reservations in South Dakota and Nebraska.

Wind River, in central Wyoming, is shared by the Northern Arapaho and the Eastern Shoshone tribes. Noah is an Arapaho tribal member and was nominated to the court by her tribe.