Ten years in prison for a Juneau man arrested at SeaTac trying to transport methamphetamine to Juneau. Ryan Budd Barnett, 30, was sentenced in U-S District Court in Juneau on Friday. Investigators say he and another transporter were caught with 11 ounces of meth when they were stopped. Burnett was convicted by a jury last March.
U.S. District Court Judge Tim Burgess said he thought that ten years was too much, but noted that he was constrained by mandatory sentence guidelines set by Congress. Defense attorney Kirsten Swanson said Burnett has essentially been scared straight since his arrest and wants to get his life on track. Burgess made a special note to have Burnett incarcerated in federal facility with an electrician’s or other vocational training program. Burnett will also be on probation for five years.
Also on Friday, Sacramento, California resident Jessica Nashea Cooper, 22, was sentenced to time already served for attempting to transport oxycodone to Juneau. She was also stopped at SeaTac in possession of 667 80-milligram pills. Burgess said that Cooper has “excellent prospects for turning her life around” and noted her attempts to stay employed and pursue an education.
Cooper has already been incarcerated for about 14 months in six different facilities in four different states. Her sentence on Friday meant that she was due to be released over the weekend.
Burgess told Cooper that she got a huge break in this case, and hoped that she took advantage of that and do something with her life.
