Sell pot to pay attorney fees?

A Forest Ranch man who allegedly was high when he hit and killed a jogger last month along Oro-Chico Highway is now looking at additional criminal charges, including illegal pot sales.

According to the Butte Interagency Narcotics Task Force, Jimmy Flores directed his 19-year-old girlfriend to sell pot to pay for his legal expenses. Last Thursday (Aug. 12), an undercover BINTF agent purchased two ounces of marijuana from Rachel Hartfield, who conducted the transaction with an 11-year-old child present. The undercover officer told Hartfield he did not have a doctor’s recommendation to use pot, and she allegedly admitted the money would go toward Flores’ defense.

Further investigation led BINTF to the couple’s home and “large tubs containing dried marijuana in various stages of processing.” They also found a handgun and evidence of hashish production.

Hartfield was arrested on multiple charges, including conspiracy to sell marijuana and child endangerment. Flores, who remains in Butte County Jail and already faces a charge of gross vehicular manslaughter in the death of 56-year-old Carrie Jean Holiman, will also face a charge of illegal pot sales.