Student pleads guilty to cocaine charge

An IU student charged with a felony dealing in cocaine pled guilty in Monroe County Circuit Court May 10. Senior Joseph Miller of Bloomington was arrested and charged May 5 at the Omega Apartments, where he resides.\nIU Police Department Detective Dave Hannum said Miller, along with as many as eight to 10 others, moved 10 to 12 ounces of cocaine approximately every two weeks since 2001. The product was distributed among the group and to others around campus. \nThe students purchased the cocaine for approximately $900-$1,400 per ounce, then sold it for $80-100 per gram, Hannum said. \nMiller was involved in the trade with junior David Drumheller, who had a connection in Ohio from whom the group obtained the cocaine. Drumheller was arrested two weeks earlier on charges of felony cocaine dealing. \nAccording to the IUPD, Miller and another student had recently purchased 2.2 pounds of cocaine, and the other student left the state after Miller's arrest.\nPolice said they found approximately a pound of powder cocaine and $4,700 in cash in Miller's apartment.\nAccording to a probable-cause affidavit, Miller was warned by his landlord, Rob Friedman, that the police were coming to his apartment. Friedman was not available for comment by IDS press time Wednesday.\nThe cocaine problem at IU centers mostly around wealthy students, many of them from the East Coast according to IUPD. \nMiller has hired attorney Jim Voyles, who has experience in felony drug cases. Voyles did not comment on the case in a phone call Thursday.\nJudge Elizabeth Mann presided over the court at Miller's initial hearing and set Miller's pretrial hearing for July 8.\n-- Contact staff writer Robert Schmitt at rsschmit@indiana.edu.