A member of Confluence Partners LLC, the company seeking to build a controversial resort and tramway at the confluence of the Colorado and Little Colorado rivers, is scheduled to appear in a Mesa, Ariz., courtroom July 25 on three 2009 drug charges.
Ivan K. Gamble, 35, of Page, Ariz., faces charges of possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphenalia and possession of a dangerous drug.
The first two charges are Class 6 felonies and the last is a Class 4 felony according to Arizona law.
According to the Tempe Police report of the incident, Gamble was driving on Loma Vista in Tempe at 3:25 a.m. on Nov. 3, 2009, when he was pulled over for driving without headlights and straddling lanes.
An alcohol test revealed Gamble had a blood alcohol content of 0.186, above Arizona's legal limit of 0.08. He was booked into Tempe City Jail and his car searched, upon which the arresting officer allegedly found a small amount of marijuana, rolling papers and two-and-a-half blue tablets that were later determined to be the street drug known as "ecstasy" (Methylenedioxymethamphetamine).
Asked why the case took three years to process, Arizona Department of Public Safety spokesman Officer Carrick Cook said the lag time was "not abnormal."
"Sometimes there's a delay with the court documents, sometimes the lab might not have all the results, or the prosecutor may just be working on other cases," he said, noting that the statute of limitations for felonies is seven years.
Gamble has a criminal history dating back to 2001 with charges including littering, trespassing, jaywalking, disobeying a police officer, driving under the influence and endangerment.