Dana Beal, 78, was arrested in Gooding County in January 2024 after officers found 58 pounds of marijuana, according to court documents.

BOISE, Idaho — A New York man known across the country for his efforts to legalize marijuana accepted a plea deal on Monday in a case where he was arrested in Gooding County on drug trafficking charges in January 2024. 

Dana Beal, 78, appeared in Gooding County court on Tuesday and pleaded guilty to two amended charges related to marijuana drug trafficking as part of his plea agreement. 

He pleaded to count one, felony possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver, and count two, possession of marijuana in excess of three ounces.

According to Beal’s probable cause affidavit, he was stopped by an Idaho State Police trooper near Twin Falls on his way to Oregon on Jan. 25, 2024. Police said Beal was driving and had a passenger.

In court documents, the trooper said he smelled marijuana from Beal’s vehicle, and both occupants were acting “extremely nervous.” Police later searched the vehicle and found approximately 56 pounds of raw marijuana, along with psilocybin mushrooms and THC wax.

Beal initially was arrested on trafficking marijuana charges and failure to affix a tax stamp, according to the criminal complaint. 

The plea subjects him to thousands of dollars in fines and mandatory time in the state penitentiary.

“The maximum penalty for that is five years in the state penitentiary and a $15,000 fine. Count two charges you with a felony possession of marijuana in excess of three ounces, and the maximum penalty for that, If convicted, is five years in the state penitentiary and a $10,000 fine,” the judge told Beal in court. 

Beal told the court he was headed to Oregon after returning from Ukraine to assist troops with pain relief.

“I was trying to bring them medication for traumatic brain injury, somehow, because of the publicity from the case, that possibility was foreclosed, which is too bad, because they really need it,” Beal said. 

He stayed in custody until March 9, when supporters posted a $250,000 bail bond.

Beal’s sentencing is set for Feb. 24, 2026.