Red Lodge: The Ordeal Is Over

September, 1978

Nearly two years ago, Montana authorities charged five persons with cultivating marijuana--a crime that under state law carries a penalty of up to life in prison. That case raised the curtain on one of the longest-running black comedies in Montana legal history, but at last the show is over. The prosecution has agreed to drop charges against the last two defendants--after courts long since freed the others on legal motions. In the end, it was a trade-off. The two remaining defendants also agreed...