Starke County Mint Farmer Sentenced in U.S. District Court

Starke County Mint Farmer, Mike Materna, was sentenced in U.S. District Court yesterday. The judge sentenced Materna to two years of probation, eight months in home detention and he was fined $20,000.

He avoided a 10-month jail sentence.

He plead guilty to one count of Discharge of Pollutants without a Permit in violation of the Clean Air Act. He reportedly admitted in court that he discharged hot water into a ditch without the proper permit.

Mint Farmer Faces Possible Prison Sentence

Mike Materna is facing a possible prison sentence because he reportedly released hot water discharge into a ditch near his mint distillery, and that has many people “hopping mad.”

State Representative Tom Dermody (R-LaPorte) is one of the people who is outspoken in his feelings about this possibility. Dermody said, (and I quote),
“To be honest with you this scares me to death. This is nothing more than a rampaging federal government.”

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