Weissport man sentenced to special state program on drug charge

A Weissport man was sentenced to a special state program for those addicted to drugs on Monday in Carbon County court.

Steven Michael Fisher, 29, was sentenced by President Judge Roger N. Nanovic II to serve 24 months in the state intermediate punishment program. The program includes seven months in a state correctional institution followed by months in an intensive inpatient drug and alcohol program run in the state prison followed by a period of time in a halfway house.

Fisher previously pleaded to one count of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance.

Fisher was arrested on Sept. 27, 2018, by Lehighton police and agents of the state attorney general’s office as part of an ongoing investigation. Authorities learned that Fisher and two others had illegal substances in their possession for sale in the county.

Fisher admitted going to the Hazleton area and purchasing methamphetamine and fentanyl and bringing the drugs back for resale.

After returning from Hazleton, police stopped the vehicle Fisher was in and made the arrest. Illegal drugs and various drug paraphernalia were found in the vehicle.

Fisher’s sentencing was done by video from the state prison at Camp Hill, Cumberland County, where he was evaluated for the program.

Nanovic also ordered the two years in the state IP will be followed by two years of state probation. He was also ordered to supply a DNA sample, get his GED while in prison and pay court costs of about $1,000.

Fisher thanked Nanovic for the opportunity to enter the program, noting he had a history of drug addiction at one time, using up to 220 bags a day. He said he sold drugs to support his own habit.