LaPorte County deputy coroner pleads guilty to drug charges

LA PORTE, Ind. (AP) - A deputy coroner in LaPorte County accused of illegally selling a narcotic painkiller has pleaded guilty to two felony drug charges.

Dawn Maxson pleaded guilty Friday to dealing a schedule I controlled substance and dealing a schedule III controlled substance. She faces between three and 18 years in prison.

The South Bend Tribune (http://bit.ly/1Uo8hIJ ) reports that the court will dismiss six felony counts related to the sale of hydromorphone, a morphine derivative prescribed for pain, if the plea is accepted.

Court documents show Maxson was arrested Oct. 29 after selling 70 hydromorphone pills for $500 in La Porte. Authorities alleged that she legally obtained the drugs through prescriptions written by a physician and then sold some of them.

Maxson has been suspended without pay pending the outcome of the case.

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Information from: South Bend Tribune, http://www.southbendtribune.com