A Coeur d'Alene defense lawyer and former deputy prosecutor is going back to prison after a judge ruled he'd violated his probation on OxyContin charges. Shawn C. Nunley, 40, was ordered to prison late last week after his probation officer said he smelled faintly of alcohol when he reported to his office May 9, and that his blood alcohol level registered at .017. Nunley admitted to consuming alcohol that day and the day before and said “he didn't think it was a big deal,” according to court documents. He also refused to provide a urine sample as requested. His probation officer said Nunley agreed not to travel to Orange County as previously allowed but that he left the probation office without asking and boarded a plane at the Spokane airport the next day, court documents say/Meghann Cuniff, Sirens & Gavels. More here.

HMOSuite: That is a question I would like answered (“What is it about Oxycontin that makes people in respectable positions lose it?”). I took the stuff like M&M’s when I had my knees replaced. I hated it and got off on to some other meds as soon as I could. Imo, the worst part about taking Oxy is that it clogs up your digestive system, if you know what I mean. I can’t imagine why anyone would want to use it. There must be a ‘high’ there, somewhere, but I never found it.

Question: Anyone have the answer re: the lure of Oxycontin?

A Coeur d’Alene defense lawyer and former deputy prosecutor was sent to prison recently after police said he recruited a client to help feed his OxyContin addiction. Shawn C. Nunley, 39, was sentenced to five years in prison with eligibility for parole in two years after he pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance. But 1st District Judge Ben Simpson retained jurisdiction over the case, meaning Nunley could be released after six months. Nunley arrived at the Idaho State Correctional Institution, just south of Boise, on Oct. 15/Meghann Cuniff, Sirens & Gavels. More here.

Question: What is it about Oxycontin that makes people in respectable positions like the Spokane Valley pastor who ripped off a parishioner and Nunley lose control?

Update: Arrested and charged with three counts of robbery is Stephen J. Beck, 23 years of age, and a transient, and Michael D. Frank, 20 years of age from Coeur d’Alene. CPD Blue Press release here.

Three attempted robberies in Coeur d’Alene late Wednesday and early today are believed to be the work of two people arrested trying to steal OxyContin from Walgreens about 5 a.m., police said. The first occurred about 8:30 p.m. when a clerk at Piggies Deli & Market, 2001 Sherman Ave., refused to hand over cash to a gunman who fled in a Nissan driven by a woman … Later that night, a man matching the description of the man at Piggies tried to rob Taj Grocery, 1003 N. 15th St., but fled when the clerk refused, police said/Meghann M. Cuniff, SR. More here.

Question: Still feel safe in Coeur d’Alene?

At about 12:42 a.m. today, Post Falls Police received a tip from Spokane Crime Stoppers that Michael Miller was staying in a local hotel in the Post Falls area. Miller was wanted for the armed robbery of a Walgreens Store on North Argonne in the Spokane Valley.  Miller allegedly entered the Walgreens store with a knife and demanded Methadone and Oxycontin. After receiving the tip, Post Falls officers responded to the Howard Johnson Inn, and took Mr. Miller into custody without incident. During the arrest, officers located paraphernalia that had been used to smoke Oxycontin, as well as, cash that is believed to be proceeds of drug sales. Mill was taken to the county jail, where he was booked on a fugitive warrant and for possession of paraphernalia with the intent to use/Post Falls Blue news release. KREM2 story here.

Item: Oxycontin addiction can touch anyone/Meghann Cuniff, SR

More Info: A Coeur d’Alene attorney reportedly recruited a client to help him feed his prescription pill addiction, paying for the man to travel to California monthly to fetch hundreds of OxyContin pills. It went on for several months until the client turned to the police, launching an investigation that ended with the lawyer’s arrest last month. Shawn C. Nunley, a former Kootenai County deputy prosecutor, faces a federal charge of conspiracy to distribute drugs, though he told police he used the pills himself and never sold them.

Question: What should be done to protect pharmacy workers from robbers with an OxyContin addiction?

Crime Stoppers is offering a reward for information that helps capture Michael Alan Miller, 24, of Coeur d’Alene. Surveillence footage showed where the robber had touched glass at the pharmacy, located at 2702 N. Argonne, and the fingerprints matched Miller’s, according to the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office. Miller has a warrant charging him with felony first-degree robbery after deputies say he held a knife to a customer’s throat and demanded OxyContin and methadone, according to a news release by Sgt. Dave Reagan. The robber fled westbound, and a K-9 team tracked him within a block of where Miller had been staying with a relative/Meghann M. Cuniff, SR. More here. Original story here.

• Pinehurst man involved in robbery to set Spokane prostitute straight/SR

DFO: Colleague Meghann Cuniff is writing a story for Sunday about the allure of oxycontin. You might want to look for it.